













































































C£/t 


/ 2 

cjL 







































































































































2- l *i 




vC 


BY EDWARD IIAZEX, A.. M. 


EMBELLISHED WITH EIGHTY-TWO ENGRAVINGS 



V\ 


PHILADELPHIA: 

URIAH HUNT & SON, 

NO. 62 N. FOURTH STREET. 

I %63 


/ 


\ S i 

ijJ. 


0 * 




c_ 





































































































































































4 













• € * 




* 





























s 







CONTENTS 


The first column of figures has reference to the pages of the text;—and the second 
to those on which the questions are to be found. 


PREFACE. 7 

THE AGRICULTURIST. 13 295 

THE HORTICULTURIST. 21 296 

THE MILLER. 514 296 

THE BAKER . 27 296 

THE CONFECTIONER. 30 297 

THE BREWER, AND THE DISTILLER. 32 297 

THE BUTCHER...-._ . 36 297 

THE TOBACCO PLANTER, AND THE TOBACCONIST. 38 297 

THE MANUFACTURER OF CLOTH. 42 298 

THE DYER. AND THE CALICO PRINTER.^. 48 299 

THE HATTER. 52 299 

THE ROPE-MAKER. 56 299 

THE TAILOR... 59 300 

THE MILLINER, AND THE LADY’S DRESS MAKER.. 61 300 

THE BARBER. 63 300 

THE TANNER, AND THE CURRIER. 67 300 

THE SHOE AND BOOTMAKER... 70 301 

THE SADDLER AND HARNESS-MAKER, AND THE TRUNK-MAKER. 73 301 

THE SOAPBOILER, AND THE CANDLE-MAKER . 75 301 

THE COMB-MAKER, AND THE BRUSH-MAKER. 80 302 

THE TAVERN-KEEPER. 84 302 

THE HUNTER. 87 303 

THE FISHERMAN. 91 303 

THE SHIPWRIGHT.100 304 

THE MARINER.104 304 

THE MERCHANT.109 305 

THE AUCTIONEER.118 306 

THE CLERGYMAN.120 306 

THE ATTORNEY AT LAW. 124 307 

THE PHYSICIAN.*.127 307 

A 2 





































VI 


THE 
THE 
THE 
THE 
THE 
THE 
THE 
THE 
THE 
THE 
THE 
THE 
THE 
THE 
• THE 
THE 
THE 
. THE 
/ THE 
THE 
THE 
THE 
THE 
THE 
THE 
THE 
THE 
THE 
THE 
THE 
THE 
THE 
THE 
THE 
THE 
THE 
THE 
THE 


CONTENTS. 


CHEMIST. 

DRUGGIST AND APOTHECARY. 

DENTIST.. 

TEACHER. 

MUSICIAN, AND THE MUSICAL INSTRUMENT MAKER 

SCULPTOR. 

PAINTER . 

ENGRAVER. 

COPPERPLATE PRINTER. 

LITHOGRAPHER. 

AUTHOR. 

PRINTER. 

TYPE-FOUNDER. 

STEREOTYPER. 

PAPER-MAKER, AND THE BOOKBINDER. 

BOOKSELLER. 

ARCHITECT. 

CARPENTER. 

STONE-MASON, THE BRICKLAYER, &c. 

PAINTER, AND THE GLAZIER. 

TURNER. 

CABINET-MAKER, AND THE UPHOLSTERER. 

CHAIR-MAKER. 

CARVER, AND THE GILDER. 

COOPER. 

WHEELWRIGHT. 

POTTER. 

GLASS-BLOWER. 

OPTICIAN... 

GOLDBEATER, AND THE JEWELLER. 

SILVERSMITH, AND THE WATCHMAKER. 

COPPERSMITH, THE BUTTON-MAKER, &.. 

TIN-PLATE WORKER, &c . 

IRON FOUNDER. 

BLACKSMITH, AND THE NAILOR. 

CUTLER . 

GUNSMITH. 

VETERINARY SURGEON. 



307 


308 


308 


308 


300 


300 


310 


310 


311 


311 


311 


312 


312 


312 


312 


313 


313 


313 


314 


314 


315 


315 


315 


315 


316 


316 


316 


316 


317 


317 


318 


318 


319 


319 


319 


320 


320 


320 











































PREFACE. 


1. The following work has been 
written for the use of Schools and 
Families, as well as for miscellaneous 
readers. It embraces a class of sub¬ 
jects in which every individual is 
deeply interested, and with which, as 
a mere philosophical inspector of the 
affairs of men, he should become ac- 
juainted. 

2. They, however, challenge atten¬ 
tion by considerations of greater mo¬ 
ment than mere curiosity: for, in the 
present age, a great proportion of 
mankind pursue some kind of busi¬ 
ness as means of subsistence or dis¬ 


tinction; and, in this country espe¬ 
cially, such pursuit is deemed honour¬ 
able, and, in fact, indispensable to a 
reputable position in the community. 

3. Nevertheless, it is a fact that can- 

i 

not have escaped the attention of per¬ 
sons of observation, that many in¬ 
dividuals mistake their appropriate 
calling, and engage in employments 
for which they have neither mental 
nor physical adaptation: some learn 
a trade, who should have studied a 
profession; others study a profession 
who should have learned a trade. 
Hence arise, in a great measure th« 











































































































































PREFACE. 


_• * t 

vm 

ill success, and discontent which so 
frequently attend the pursuits of men. 

4. For these reasons, parents should 
be particularly cautious in the choice 
of permanent employments for their 
children; and, in every case, capacity 
should be especially regarded, with¬ 
out paying much attention to the com¬ 
parative favour in which the several 
employments may be held; for, a suc¬ 
cessful prosecution of an humble busi¬ 
ness is far more honourable than in¬ 
feriority or a failure in one which may 
be greatly esteemed. 

5. To determine the particular ge¬ 
nius of children, parents should give 
them, at least, a superficial knowledge 
of the several trades and professions. 
To do this effectually, a systematic 
course of instruction should be given 
not only at the family fireside and in 
the school-room, but also at places 
where practical exhibitions of the 
several employments may be seen. 
These means, together with a com¬ 
petent literary education and some 
tools and other facilities for mechan¬ 
ical operations, can scarcely fail of 
furnishing clear indications of intel¬ 
lectual bias. 

6. The course just proposed is not 
only necessary to a judicious choice 
of a trade or profession, but also as 
means of intellectual improvement: 
and as such it should be pursued, at 
all events, even though the choice of 
an employment were not in view. 

7. We are endowed with a nature 


composed of many faculties both of 
the intellectual and the animal kinds, 
and the reasoning faculties were ori¬ 
ginally designed by the creator to 
have the ascendency. In the present 
moral condition of man, however, 
they do not commonly maintain their 
right of precedence. This failure 
arises from imbecility, originating, in 
part, from a deficiency in judicious 
cultivation, and from the superior 
strength of the passions. 

8. This condition is particularly 
conspicuous in youth, and shows it¬ 
self in disobedience to parents, and in 
various other aberrations from moral 
duty. If, therefore, parents would have 
their children act a reasonable part, 
while in their minority, and, also, after 
they have assumed their stations in 
manhood, they must pursue a course 
of early instruction calculated to se¬ 
cure the ascendency of the reasoning 
faculties. 

9. The subjects for instruction best 
adapted to the cultivation of the young 
mind are the common things with 
which we are surrounded. This is 
evident from the fact, that it uniformly 
expands with great rapidity under 
their influence during the three or 
four first years of life: for it is from 
them, children obtain all their ideas, 
as well as a knowledge of the lan¬ 
guage by which they are expressed. 

10. The rapid progress of young 
children in the acquisition of know¬ 
ledge often excites the surprise of pa 









PREFACE. 


rents of observation, and the fact that 
their improvement is almost impercep¬ 
tible after they have attained to the 
age of four or five years is equally 
surprising. Why, it is often asked, do 
not children continue to advance in 
knowledge with equal and increased 
rapidity, especially, as their capabili¬ 
ties increase with age 1 

11. The solution of this question is 
not difficult. Children continue to 
improve, while they have the means 
of doing so; but having acquired a 
knowledge of the objects within their 
reach, at least, so far as they may be 
capable at the time, their advancement 
must consequently cease. It is hardly 
necessary to remark, that the march 
of mind might be continued with in¬ 
creased celerity, were new objects or 
subjects continually presented. 

12. In supplying subjects for mental 
improvement, as they may be needed 
at the several stages of advancement, 
there can be but little difficulty; since 
we are surrounded by works both of 
nature and of art. In fact, the same 
subjects may be presented several 
times, and, at each presentation, in¬ 
structions might be given adapted to 
the particular state of improvement 
in the pupil. 

13. Instructions of this nature need 
never interfere injuriously with those 
on the elementary branches of educa¬ 
tion; although the latter would un¬ 
doubtedly be considered of minor im¬ 
portance. Had they been always re- 

2 


ix 

garded in this light, our schools would 
now' present a far more favourable 
aspect, and w r e should have been farther 
removed from the ignorance and the 
barbarism of the middle ages. 

14. Were this view of education 
generally adopted, teachers would 
soon find, that the business of com¬ 
municating instructions to the young 
has been changed from an irksome 
to a pleasant task; since their pu¬ 
pils will have become studious and 
intellectual, and consequently more 
capable of comprehending explana¬ 
tions upon every subject. Such a 
course would also be attended with 
the incidental advantage of good con¬ 
duct on the part of pupils, inasmuch 
as the elevation of the understanding 
over the passions uniformly tends to 
this result. 

15. For carrying into practice a sys¬ 
tem of intellectual education, the fol¬ 
lowing work supplies as great an 
amount of materials as can be em¬ 
bodied in the same compass. Every 
article may be made the foundation 
of one lecture or more, which might 
have reference not only to the parti¬ 
cular subject on which it treats, but 
also to the meaning and application 
of the words. 

14. The articles have been con¬ 
cisely written, as must necessarily be 
the case in all works embracing sc 
great a variety of subjects. This par¬ 
ticular trait, however, need not be 
considered objectionable, since a. 









X 


PREFACE. 


who may desire to read more exten¬ 
sively on any particular subject, can 
easily obtain works which are exclu¬ 
sively devoted to it. 

17. Prolix descriptions of machine¬ 
ry and of mechanical operations have 
been studiously avoided; for, it has 
been presumed, that all who might 
have perseverance enough to read 
such details, would feel curiosity suf¬ 
ficient to visit the shops and manu¬ 
factories, and see the machines and 
operations themselves. Nevertheless, 
enough has been said, in all cases, to 
give a general idea of the business, 
and to guide in the researches of those 
who may wish to obtain information 
by the impressive method of actual 
inspection. 

18. A great proportion of the whole 
work is occupied in recounting his¬ 
torical facts, connected with the in¬ 
vention and progress of the arts. The 
author was induced to pay especial 
attention to this branch of history, 
from the consideration, that it fur¬ 
nishes very clear indications of the 
real state of society in past ages, as 
well as at the present time; and also 
that it would supply the reader with 
data, by which he might, in some 
measure, determine the vast capabil¬ 
ities of man. 

19. This kind of historical informa¬ 
tion will be especially beneficial to 
the youthful mind, by inducing a 
habit of investigation and antiquarian 
research. In addition to this, a know¬ 


ledge of the origin and progress of 
the various employments which are 
in active operation all around, will 
throw upon the busy world an aspect 
exceedingly interesting. 

20. It may be well, however, to 
caution the reader against expecting 
too much information of this kind, in 
regard to most of the trades prac¬ 
tised in very ancient times. Many of 
the most useful inventions were ef¬ 
fected before any permanent means 
of record had been devised; and, in 
after ages, among the Greeks and 
Romans, the useful arts were prac¬ 
tised almost exclusively by slaves. 
The latter circumstance led to their 
general neglect by the writers among 
these distinguished people 

21. The information which may be 
obtained from this work, especially 
when accompanied by the inspection 
of the operations which it describes, 
may be daily applied to some useful 
purpose. It will be particularly valu¬ 
able in furnishing subjects for conver¬ 
sation, and in preventing the mind 
from continuing in, or from sinking 
into, a state of idle indifference in re¬ 
gard to the busy scenes of this world. 

22. In the composition of “ The Pa¬ 
norama of Professions and Trades , u 
all puerile expressions have been 
avoided, not only because they would 
be offensive to adult individuals of 
taste, but because they are at least 
useless, if not positively injurious, to 
younger persons. What parent of 









PREFACE. 


Xl 


reflection would suffer his children to 
peruse a book calculated to induce or 
confirm a manner of speaking or 
writing, which he would not have 
them use after having arrived to man¬ 
hood? Every sentence may be ren 
dered perfectly plain by appropriate 
explanations and illustrations. 

23. No formal classification of the 
professions and trades has been 
adopted, although those articles which 
treat of kindred subjects have been 
placed near each other, and in that 
order which seemed to be the most 
natural. The paragraphs of the sev¬ 
eral articles have been numbered for 
the especial accommodation of classes 
in schools: but this particular feature 
of the work need meet with no se¬ 
rious objection from miscellaneous 
readers, as it has no other effect, in 
Preference to its use by them, than to 
give it the aspect of a school-book. 

24. While writing the articles on 
the different subjects, the author con¬ 
sulted several works which embraced 
the arts and sciences generally, as 
well as many which were more cir¬ 
cumscribed in their objects. He, how¬ 
ever, relied more upon them for his¬ 
torical facts than for a knowledge of 
the operations and processes which 
he had occasion to detail. For this 
he depended, as far as practicable, 
upon his own personal researches, al¬ 
though in the employment of appro¬ 
priate phraseology, he acknowledges 
his obligations to predecessors. 


25. In the embellishment of “ The 
Panorama,” great expenses have been 
incurred. The first title-page and the 
representation at the commencement 
of each article were designed express¬ 
ly for the work. The designs were 
made by Messrs. Morton, Hoyle, Bur¬ 
ton, and Gimber,. of New-York; and 
nearly the whole of the engraving 
was executed by Mr. A. J. Mason, of 
the same city, but lately from London. 
The first title, the cut representing 
some of the operations of the manu¬ 
facturer, and the illustrations of archi¬ 
tecture and of optics, were engraved 
by R. S. Gilbert, of Philadelphia. 

26. Near the close of the volume 
is a copious set of questions upon the 
articles which precede; and these are 
numbered according to the para¬ 
graphs to which they refer. It is re¬ 
commended to parents and teachers, 
to use not only these, but also many 
more, which they can easily construct 
.extemporally. 

27. The author cannot well close 
his preface without again recommend¬ 
ing to parents the practice of teach¬ 
ing their children, not only when 
the latter are deprived of the advan¬ 
tages of school instructions, but even 
when they enjoy the best privileges 
of this kind. The necessity of per¬ 
forming this duty is evident from 
what has been already said: but an 
additional argument in its favour 
may be derived from the circum¬ 
stance, that the prevailing system 








PREFACE. 


• • 

XU 

of education is not sufficiently intel¬ 
lectual. 

23. Many parents see the necessity 
of domestic instructions; but they 
commonly fancy that they have dis¬ 
charged their obligations by hearing 
their children read and spell a little. 
Some interpose their authority so far 
as to compel their children to commit 
to memory the tasks imposed by the 
teachers, and, to determine the fact 
of the committal, go through the irk¬ 
some task of hearing the recitations. 

29. These efforts are certainly com¬ 
mendable, and ought not to be dis¬ 
couraged ; but they do not embrace 
the kind of instructions which the 
author is particularly urgent in re¬ 
commending. He verily believes 
that more efficient aid can be afforded 
to the intellect in one hour, when 
common things are the subjects of in¬ 
struction, than by a month’s severe 
discipline in the course just alluded to. 

30. The objection most commonly 
urged to the performance of the duty 
proposed, is, “We have not time.” 
To this it may be answered: parents 
have time enough to provide food and 
raiment, as well as every other means 
to supply the wants of the animal na¬ 
ture of their children; and if they 
•would estimate, with any degree of 
exactness, their intellectual necessi¬ 
ties, no such objection would be 
made, especially by those who feel 
the influence of moral obligation. 


31. But the most formidable objec¬ 
tion is this: “We are incapable of ex¬ 
ecuting a task so difficult, teaching 
not being our business.” To this it 
may be answered: the difficulty is 
much overrated. Any individual with 
a moderate share of intelligence, and 
some reading, can name the materials 
of the furniture of his house, and de¬ 
scribe the process by which each ar¬ 
ticle has been manufactured. After 
having done this, he can easily extend 
his instructions upon other subjects 
of a similar nature. 

32. A systematic course of instruc¬ 
tion, conducted on the principles pro¬ 
posed, would be attended with no¬ 
thing irksome or disagreeable. On 
the contrary, it would add much in¬ 
terest to the social intercourse be¬ 
tween parents and children; and the 
former would soon discover in the 
latter a great increase of intellectual 
strength, which would display itself 
in an improved expression of coun¬ 
tenance, as well as in a more rapid 
progress in their regular studies at 
school. 

33. With the preceding remarks, 
the author submits his work to the 
public, in the confident expectation, 
that the subjects which it embraces, 
that the care which has been taken in 
its composition, and that the skill of 
the artists employed in its embellish¬ 
ment, will secure to it an abundant 
and liberal patronage. 









J. Agriculture embraces, in its broad 
-gnification, whatever relates to the culti¬ 
vation of the fields, with the view of pro¬ 
ducing food for man, and those animals 
which he may have brought into a state 
of domestication. 

2. If we carry our observations so far back 
as to reach the antediluvian history of the 
earth, we shall find, from the authority of 
scripture, that the cultivation of the soi*l 
was the first employment of man, after 
his expulsion from the garden of Eden, 
when he. was commanded “to till the 
ground from which he had been taken.” 
We shall also learn from the same source 
of information, that “ Cain was a husband¬ 
man,” and that “ Abel was a keeper of 
sheep.” Hence it may be inferred, that j 


Adam instructed his sons in the art o» 
husbandry; and that they, in turn, com¬ 
municated this knowledge to their posteri¬ 
ty, together with the superadded informa¬ 
tion which had resulted from their ow. 
experience. Improvement in this art was 
probably thenceforth progressive, until the 
overwhelming catastrophe of the flood. 

3. After the waters had retired from the 
face of the earth, Noah resorted to hus¬ 
bandry, as the surest means of procuring 
the necessaries and comforts of life. The 
art of cultivating the soil, was uninterrupt¬ 
edly preserved in many branches of the 
great family of Noah; but, in others, it was, 
at length, entirely lost. In the latter case, 
the people, having sunk into a state of bar- 
[j barism, depended for subsistence on the 

B 






























14 


THE AGRICULTURIST. 


natural productions of the earth, and on 
such animals as they could contrive to cap¬ 
ture by hunting and fishing. Many of 
these degenerate tribes did not emerge 
from this condition for several succeeding 
ages. 

o m 9 

4. Notwithstanding the great antiquity 
of agriculture, the husbandmen, for several 
centuries immediately succeeding the 
deluge, seem to have been but little ac¬ 
quainted with any proper method of re¬ 
storing fertility to an exhausted soil; for 
we find them frequently changing their 
residence, as their flocks and herds requir¬ 
ed fresh pasturage, or as their tillage land 
became unproductive. As men, however, 
became more numerous, and as their flocks 
increased, this practice became inconve¬ 
nient, and, in some cases, impracticable. 
They were, therefore, compelled, by de¬ 
grees, to confine their flocks and herds, 
and their farming operations, to lands of 
more narrow and specified limits. 

5. The Chaldeans were probably the peo¬ 
ple who first adopted the important mea¬ 
sure, of retaining perpetual possession of 
the soil which they had cultivated; and, 
consequently, were among the first who 
became skilful in agriculture. But all the 
great nations of antiquity held this art in 
the highest estimation, and usually attri¬ 
buted its invention to superhuman agency. 
The Egyptians even worshipped the image 
of an ox, in gratitude for the services of 
that animal in the labours of the field. 

6. The reader of ancient history can form 
some idea of the extent to which this art 
was cultivated in those days, from the 
warlike operations of different nations; 
for, from no other source could the great 
armies which were then brought into the 
field, have been supplied with the neces¬ 
sary provisions. The Greeks and the Ro¬ 
mans, who were more celebrated than any 


other people for their military enterprise, 
were also most attentive to the proper cul¬ 
tivation of the soil; and many of their 
distinguished men, especially among the 
Romans, were practical husbandmen. 

7. Nor was agriculture neglected by the 
learned men of antiquity. Several works 
on this subject, by Greek and Latin au¬ 
thors, have descended to our times; and 
the correctness of many of the principles 
which they inculcate, has been confirmed 
by modern experience. 

8. Throughout the extensive empire of 
Rome, agriculture maintained a respecta¬ 
ble standing, until the commencement of 
those formidable invasions of the northern 
hordes, which, finally, nearly extinguished 
the arts and sciences, in every part of Eu¬ 
rope. During the long period of anarchy 
which succeeded the settlement of these 
barbarians in their newly-acquired pos¬ 
sessions, pasturage was, in most cases, pre¬ 
ferred to tillage, as being better suited to 
their state of civilization, and as affording 
facilities of removal, in cases of alarm from 
invading enemies. But when permanent 
governments were again established, and 
the people enjoyed comparative peace, the 
regular cultivation of the soil once more 
began to revive. 

o 

9. The art of husbandry was at a low ebb 
in England, until the fourteenth century, 
when it began to be practised with consi¬ 
derable success in the midland and south¬ 
western parts of the island: yet, it does 
not seem to have been cultivated as a sci¬ 
ence, until the latter end of the sixteenth 
century. The first book on husbandry, 
printed and published in the English lan¬ 
guage, appeared in 1534. It was written 
by Sir A. Fitzherbert, a judge of the Com¬ 
mon Pleas, who had studied the laws of 
vegetation, and the nature of soils, with 
philosophical accuracy. 











THE AGRICULTURIST. 


15 


- 1 ..-. -- — — • . - ■ -.— -. 

10. Very little improvement was made on 
the theory of this author, for upwards of a 
hundred years, when Sir Hugh Platt dis¬ 
covered and brought into use several kinds 
of manures for fertilizing and restoring 
exhausted soils. 

11. Agriculture again received a new 
impulse, about the middle of the eighteenth 
century; and, in 1793, a Board of Agri¬ 
culture was established by an act of Par¬ 
liament, at the suggestion of Sir John Sin¬ 
clair, who was elected its first president. 
Through the influence of this board, a 
great number of agricultural societies nave 
been formed in the kingdom, and much 
valuable information on rural economy has 
been communicated to the public, through 
the medium of a voluminous periodical 
under its superintendence. 

12. After the example of Great Britain, 
agricultural societies have been formed, 
and periodical journals published, in vari¬ 
ous parts of the continent of Europe, as 
well as in the United States. The prin¬ 
cipal publications devoted to this subject 
in this country, are the American Farmer , 
at Baltimore; the New England Farmer , 
at Boston; and the Genesee Farmer , at 
Rochester. 

13. The modem improvements in hus¬ 
bandry consist, principally, in the proper 
application of manures, the mixture of dif¬ 
ferent kinds of earths, the use of plaster 
and lime, the rotation of crops, adapting 
the crop to the soil, the introduction of new 
kinds of grain, roots, grasses, and fruits, as 
well as improvements in the breeds of do¬ 
mestic animals, and in the implements 
with which the various operations of the 
art are performed. 

14. For many of the improved processes 
which relate to the amelioration of the 
soil, we are indebted to chemistry. Before 
this science was brought to the aid of the 

O 


art, the cultivators of the soil were chiefly 
guided by the precept and example of 
their predecessors, which were often inap¬ 
plicable. By the aid of chemical analy¬ 
sis, it is easy to discover the constituent 
parts of different soils; and, with this 
knowledge, there is but little difficulty in 
determining the best mode of improving 
them, or in applying the most suitable 
crops. 

Cl5. In the large extent of territory em¬ 
braced within the United States, there is 
great variation of soil and climate; but 
in each state, or district, the attention of 
the cultivators is directed to the produc¬ 
tion of those articles which, under the cir¬ 
cumstances, promise to be most profitable. 
In the northern portions of our country, 
the cultivators of the soil are called farm¬ 
ers. They direct their attention chiefly 
to the production of wheat, rye, corn, oats, 
barley, peas, beans, potatoes, pumpkins, 
and flax, together with grasses and fruits 
of various kinds. The same class of men 
in the southern states are usually denomi¬ 
nated planters, who confine themselves 
principally to tobacco, rice, cotton, sugar- 
cane, or hemp. In some parts of that por¬ 
tion of our country, however, rye, wheat, 
oats, and sweet potatoes, are extensively 
cultivated; and, in almost every part, corn 
is a favourite article. 

16. The process of cultivating most of 
the productions which have been mention¬ 
ed, is nearly the same. In general, with 
the occasional exception of new lands, the 
plough is used to prepare the ground for 
the reception of the seed. Wheat, rye, 
barley, oats, peas, and the seeds of hemp 
and flax, are scattered with the hand of 
the husbandman, and are covered in the 
earth with the harrow. In Great Britain, 
such seeds are sown in drills; and this 
method is thought to be better than ours, 







16 


THE AGRICULTURIST. 


as it admits of the use of the hoe, while the 
vegetable is growing. 

17. Corn, beans, potatoes, and pumpkins, 
are covered in the earth with the hoe. The 
ground is ploughed several times during 
the summer, to make it loose, and to keep 
down the weeds. The hoe is also used in 
accomplishing the same objects, and in de¬ 
positing fresh earth around the growing 
vegetable. 

18. When ripe, wheat, barley, oats, and 
peas, are cut down with the sickle, cra¬ 
dle, or scythe; while hemp and flax are 
pulled up by the roots. The seeds are se¬ 
parated from the other parts of the plants 
with the flail, or by means of horses or 
oxen driven round upon them. Of late, 
threshing machines are used to effect the 
same object. Chaff, and extraneous mat¬ 
ters generally, are separated from the 
grain, or seeds, by means of a fanning-mill, 
or with a large fan made of the tw T igs of 
the willow. The same thing was formerly, 
and is yet, sometimes effected by the aid 
of a current of air. 

19. When the corn, or maize, has become 
ripe, the ears, with the husks, and some¬ 
times the stalks, are deposited in large 
heaps. To assist in stripping the husks 
from the ears, it is customary to call toge¬ 
ther the neighbours. In such cases, the 
owner of the corn provides for them a sup¬ 
per, together with some means of merri¬ 
ment and good cheer. 

20. This custom is most prevalent, where 
the greater part of the labour is performed 
by slaves. The blacks, when assembled for 
a husking match, choose a captain, whose 
business it is to lead the song, while the 
rest join in chorus. Sometimes, they di¬ 
vide the corn, as nearly as possible, into 
two equal heaps, and apportion the hands 
accordingly, with a captain to each divi¬ 
sion. This is done to produce a contest 


for the most speedy execution of the task. 
Should the owner of the corn be sparing 
of his refreshments, his want of generosity 
is sure to be published, or sung, at every 
similar frolic in the neighbourhood. 

21. Maize, or Indian corn, and potatoes 
of all kinds, were unknown in the eastern 
continent, until the discovery of America. 
Their origin is, therefore, know r n with cei 
tainty; but some of the other productions 
which have been mentioned, cannot be so 
satisfactorily traced. This is particularly 
the case with regard to those which have 
been extensively cultivated for many cen¬ 
turies. 

22. The grasses have ever been valua¬ 
ble to man, as affording a supply of food for 
domestic animals. Many portions of our 
country are particularly adapted to grazing. 
Where this is the case, the farmers usually 
turn their attention to raising live stock, 
and to making butter and cheese. Grass 
reserved in meadows, as a supply of food 
for the winter, is cut at maturity with a 
scythe, dried in the sun, and stored in 
barns, or heaped in stacks. 

23. Rice was first cultivated in the east¬ 
ern parts of Asia, and, from the earliest 
ages, has been the principal article of food 
among the Chinese and Hindoos. To this 
grain may be attributed, in a great mea¬ 
sure, the early civilization of those na¬ 
tions ; and its adaptation to marshy grounds 
caused many districts to become populous, 
which would otherwise have remained 
irreclaimable and desolate. 

24. Rice was long known in the east, 
before it was introduced into Egypt and 
Greece, whence it spread over Africa ge¬ 
nerally, and the southern parts of Europe. 
It is now cultivated in all the warm parts 
of the globe, chiefly on grounds subject tc 
periodical inundations. The Chinese ob¬ 
tain two crops a year from the same ground, 


✓ 











THE AGRICULTURIST. 


17 


and cultivate it in this way from genera¬ 
tion to generation, without applying any 
manure, except the stubble of the prece¬ 
ding crop, and the mud deposited from the 
water overflowing it. 

25. Soon after the waters of the inun¬ 
dation have retired, a spot is inclosed with 
an embankment, lightly ploughed and har¬ 
rowed, and then sown very thickly with 
the grain. Immediately, a thin sheet of 
water is brought over it, either by a stream 
or some hydraulic machinery. When the 
plants have grown to the height of six or 
seven inches, they are transplanted in fur¬ 
rows, and again water is brought over 
them, and kept on, until the crop begins 
to ripen, when it is withheld. 

26. The crop is cut with a sickle, thresh¬ 
ed with a flail, or by the treading of cat¬ 
tle ; and the husks, which adhere closely 
to the kernel, are beaten off in a stone 
mortar, or by passing the grain through a 
mill, similar to our corn-mills. The mode 
of cultivating rice, in any part of the 
world, varies but little from the foregoing 
process. The point which requires the 
greatest attention, is the keeping of the 
ground properly covered with water. 

27. Rice was introduced into the Caroli- 
nas in 1697, where it is now produced in 
greater perfection than in any other coun¬ 
try. The seeds are dropped along, from 
the small end of a gourd, into drills made 
with one corner of a hoe. The plants, 
when partly grown, are not transferred to 
another place, as in Asia, but are suffered 
to grow and ripen in the original drills. 
The crop is secured like wheat, and the 
husks are forced from the grain by a ma¬ 
chine, which leaves the kernels more per¬ 
fect than the methods adopted in other 
countries. 

28. Cotton is cultivated in the East and 
West Indies, North and South America, 

3 


Egypt, and in many other parts of the 
world, where the climate is sufficiently 
warm for the purpose. There are several 
species of this plant; of which three kinds 
are cultivated in the southern states of the 
Union—the nankeen cotton , the green seed 
cotton , and the black seed , or sea island 
cotton. The two first, which grow in the 
middle and upland countries, are denomi¬ 
nated short staple cotton : the last is culti¬ 
vated in the lower country, near the sea, 
and on the islands near the main land, and 
is of a fine quality, and of a long staple. 

29. The plants are propagated annually 
from seeds, which are sown very thickly 
in ridges made with the plough, or hoe. 
After they have grown to the height ot 
three or four inches, part of them are pull- 
ed up, in order that the rest, while coming 
to maturity, may stand about four inches 
apart. It is henceforth managed, unC\ 
fully grown, like Indian corn. 

30. The cotton is inelosed in pods, which 
open as fast as their contents become fit to 
bo gathered. In Georgia, about eighty 
pounds of upland cotton can be gathered 
by a single hand, in a day; but in Alaba¬ 
ma and Mississippi, where the plant thrives 
better, two hundred pounds are frequently 
collected in the same time. 

31. The seeds adhere closely to the cot¬ 
ton, when picked from the pods; but they 
are properly separated by machines called 
gins; of which there are two kinds,—the 
roller-gin, and the saw-gin. The essen¬ 
tial parts of the former are two cylinders, 
which are placed nearly in contact with 
each other. By their,- revolving motion, 
the cotton is drawn between them, while 
the size of' the seeds prevents their pas¬ 
sage. This machine, being of small size, 
is worked by hand. 

s^32. The saw-gin is much larger, and is 
moved by animal, steam, or water-power 

B 2 






18 


THE AGRICULTURIST. 


It consists of a receiver, having one side 
covered with strong wires, placed in a pa¬ 
rallel direction, about an eighth of an inch 
apart, and a number of circular saws, 
which revolve on a common axis. The 
saws pass between these wires, and entan¬ 
gle in their teeth the cotton, which is 
thereby drawn through the grating; while 
the seeds, from their size, are forced to 
remain on the other side. 

33. Before the invention of the saw-gin, 
the seeds were separated from the upland 
cottons by hand,—a method so extremely 
tedious, that their cultivation was attended 
with but little profit to the planter. This 
machine was invented in Georgia, by Eli 
Whitney, of Massachusetts. It was un¬ 
dertaken at the request of several planters 
of the former state, and was there put in 
operation in 1792. 

34. In the preceding year, the whole 
crop of cotton in the United States was 
only sixty-four bales; but, in 1834, it 
amounted to 1,000,617. The vast increase 
in the production of this article has arisen, 
in part, from the increased demand for it 
in Europe, and in the Northern States, but 
chiefly from the use of the invaluable ma¬ 
chine just mentioned. 

35. Sugar-cane was cultivated by the 
Chinese, at a very early period, probably 
two thousand years before it was known in 
Europe; but sugar, in a candied form, was 
used in small quantities by the Greeks 
and Romans, in the days of their prosperi¬ 
ty. It was probably brought from Bengal, 
Siam, or some of the East India Islands, 
as it is supposed that it grew nowhere else 
at that time. 

36. m the thirteenth century, soon after 
the merchants of the West began to traf¬ 
fic in Indian articles of commerce, the 
plant was introduced into Arabia Felix, 
tuvl thence into Egypt, Nubia, Ethiopia, 


and Morocco. The Spaniards obtained it 
from the Moors, and, in the fifteenth cen¬ 
tury, introduced it into the Canary islands. 
It was brought to America and the West 

o 

India Islands, by the Spaniards and Portu¬ 
guese. It is now cultivated in the United 
States, below the thirty-first degree of 
latitude, and in the warm parts of the 
globe generally. 

37. Previous to the year 1466, sugar was 
known in England chiefly as a medicine; 
and, although the sugar-cane was cultiva¬ 
ted at that time in several places on the 
Mediterranean, it was not more extensively 
used on the continent. Now, in point of 
importance, it ranks next to wheat and 
rice in the vegetable world, and first in 
maritime commerce. 

38. The cultivators of sugar-cane pro¬ 
pagate the plant by means of cuttings from 
the lower end of the stalks, which are 
planted, in the spring or autumn, in drills, 
or in furrows formed by the plough. The 
new plants spring from the joints of the 
cuttings, and are fit to be gathered for 
use in eight, terr, twelve, or fourteen 
months. While growing, sugar-cane is 
managed much like Indian corn. 

39. When ripe, the cane is cut and 
brought to the sugar-mill, where the juice is 
expressed between iron or stone cylinders, 
moved by steam, water, or animal power. 
The juice thus obtained is evaporated in 
large boilers, to a syrup, which is after¬ 
wards removed to coolers, where it is agi¬ 
tated with wooden instruments called stir¬ 
rers. To accelerate its cooling, it is next 
poured into casks, and, when yet warm, is 
conveyed to barrels, placed in an upright 
position over a cistern, and pierced in the 
bottom in several places. The holes being 
partially stopped with canes, the part which 
still remains in the form of syrup, filters 
through them into the cistern beneath. 







rllE Ab Kit; t' LTURIST. 


19 


while the rest is left in the form of sugar, 
in the state called muscovado. 

40. This sugar is of a yellow colour, be¬ 
ing yet in a crude or raw state. It is further 
purified by various processes, such as re¬ 
dissolving it in water, and again boiling it 
with lime and bullocks’ blood, or with ani¬ 
mal charcoal, and passing the syrup through 
several canvas filters. 

41. Loaf-sugar is manufactured by pour¬ 
ing the syrup, after it has been purified, 
and reduced to a certain thickness by eva¬ 
poration, into unglazed earthen vessels of 
a conical shape. The cones have a hole 
at their apex, through which may filter 
tne syrup which separates from the sugar 
above. Most of the sugar is imported in 
a raw or crude state, and is afterwards re¬ 
fined in the cities, in sugar-houses. 

42. Molasses is far less free from extra¬ 
neous substances than sugar, as it is no¬ 
thing more than the drainings from the 
latter. Rum is distilled from inferior mo¬ 
lasses, and other saccharine matter of the 
cane, which will answer for no other pur¬ 
pose. 

43. Sugar is also manufactured from 
the sap of the sugar-maple, in considerable 
quantities* jg, the northern parts of the Uni¬ 
ted States, and in the Canadas. The sap is 
obtained by cutting a notch, or boring a 
hole, in the tree, and applying a spout to 
conduct it to a receiver, which is either a 
rude trough or a cheap vessel made by a 
cooper. This operation is performed late 
in the winter, or early in the spring, when 
the weather is freezing at night, and thaw¬ 
ing in the day. 

44. The liquid in which the saccharine 
matter is suspended, is evaporated by heat, 
as in the case of the juice of the cane. 
During the process of evaporation, slices 
of pork are kept in the kettle, to prevent 
the saD, or syrup, from boiling over. 


45. When a sufficient quantity of syrup, 
of a certain thickness, has been obtained, it 
is passed through a strainer, and, having 
been again placed over the fire, it is clari¬ 
fied with eggs and milk; the scum, as it 
rises, being carefully removed with a 
skimmer. When sufficiently reduced, it 
is usually poured into tin pans or basins, 
in which, as it cools, it consolidates into 
hard cakes of sugar. 

46. Most of the lands in a state of na¬ 
ture, are covered with forest trees. This 
is especially the case in North America. 
When this division of our continent was 
first visited by Europeans, it was nearly 
one vast wilderness, throughout its entire 
extent; and even now, after a lapse of 
three centuries, a great portion of it re¬ 
mains in the same situation. The indus¬ 
trious settlers, however, are rapidly clear¬ 
ing away the natural encumorances of the 
soil; and before a similar period shall have 
passed away, we may expect that civilized 
men will have occupied every portion of 
this vast territory which may be worthy of 
cultivation. 

47. The mode of clearing land, as it is 
termed, varies in different parts of the 
United States. In Pennsylvania, and in 
neighbourhoods settled by people from 
that state, the large trees are deadened 
by girdling them, and the small ones, to« 
gether with the underbrush, are felled ana 
burned. This mode is very objectionablQ 
for the reason, that the limbs on the stand 
ing trees, when they have become rotten, 
sometimes peril the lives of those that may 
be underneath. It seems, however, that 
those who pursue this method prefer risk¬ 
ing life in this way, to wearing it out in 
wielding the axe and in rolling logs. 

48. A very different plan is pursued by 
settlers from New-England. The under¬ 
brush is first cut down, and piled in heaps 










20 


THE AGRICULTURIST. 


the large trees are then felled, to serve as 
foundations for log-heaps; and the smaller 
ones are cut so as to fall as nearly parallel 
to these as practicable. The smaller trees, 
as well as the limbs of the larger ones, are 
cut into lengths of twelve or fifteen feet. 

49. At a proper season of the year, 
when the brush has become dry enough, 
fire is applied, which consumes much of 
the small stuff The logs are next hauled 
together, with oxen or horses, and rolled 
into heaps with handspikes. The small 
stuff which has escaped the first burning, 
is thrown upon the heaps, and, fire being 
applied, the whole is consumed together. 

50. In the Northern, Middle, and West¬ 
ern States, where a great proportion of the 
timber is beech, maple, and elm, great 
quantities of ashes are obtained, in this 
mode of clearing land. From these ashes 
are extracted the pot and pearl-ashes of 
commerce, which have been, and still are, 
among the principal exports of the United 
States. 

51. The usual process of making pot¬ 
ash, is as follows: the crude ashes are put 
into large tubs, or leeches , with a small 
quantity of salt and lime. The strength of 
this mixture is extracted, by pouring upon 
it hot water, which passes through it into 
a reservoir. The water thus saturated is 


called black ley, which is evaporated in 
large kettles. The residuum is called black 
salts, which are converted into pot-ash, by 
applying to the kettle an intense heat. 

52. The process of making pearl-ash is 
the same, until the ley has been reduced 
to black salts, except that no lime nor salt 
is used. The salts are baked in large 
ovens, heated by a blazing fire, which pro¬ 
ceeds from an arch below. When suffi¬ 
ciently scorched , the salts are dissolved in 
hot water. The solution is allowed to be 
at rest, until all extraneous substances have 
settled to the bottom, when it is drawn off, 
and evaporated as before. The residuum 
is called white salts. Another baking, 
like the former, completes the process. 

53. Very few of the settlers have an 
ashery, as it is called, in which the whole 
process of making either pot or pearl-ash 
is performed. They usually sell the black 
salts to the store-keepers in their neigh¬ 
bourhood, who complete the process of the 
manufacture. 

54. The trade in ashes is often profitable 
to the settlers: some of them even pay, in 
this way, the whole expense of clearing 
their land. Pot and pearl-ashes are pack¬ 
ed in strong barrels, and sent to the cities, 
where, previous to sale, they are inspected, 
and branded according to their quality. 












1. The Creator of the Universe, having 
formed man from the dust of the ground, 
provided a magnificent garden for his resi¬ 
dence, and commanded him “to dress it 
and keep itbut, having transgressed the 
commandment of his lawful Sovereign, he 
was driven from this delightful paradise, 
thenceforth to gain a subsistence from the 
earth at large, which had been cursed with 
barrenness, thorns, thistles, and briars. 

2. Scripture does not inform us, that 
Adam turned his attention to gardening; 
nor have we any means of determining the 
state of this art, in the centuries previous 
to the flood: but it is highly probable, that 
it had arrived to considerable perfection, 
before the approach of this destructive 
visitation from Heaven. 

3. Gardens for useful purposes, were 


probably made soon after the waters had 
subsided ; and the statement in Scripture, 
that “Noah planted a vineyard,” may, 
perhaps, be regarded as evidence sufficient 
to establish it as a fact. If this were the 
case, the art, doubtless, continued progres¬ 
sive among those descendants of Noah, who 
did not sink into a state of barbarism after 
the confusion of tongues. 

4. Among savage nations, one of the 
first indications of advancement towards a 
state of civilization, is the cultivation of a 
little spot of ground for raising vegetables; 
and the degree of refinement among the 
inhabitants of any country, may be deter¬ 
mined, with tolerable certainty, by the 
taste and skill exhibited in their gardens. 

5. Ornamental gardening is never at¬ 
tended to, in any country, until the arts in 






































22 


THE HORTICULTURIST. 


general have advanced to a considerable 
degree of perfection; and it uniformly de¬ 
clines with other fine, or ornamental arts. 
Accordingly, we do not read of splendid 
gardens among the Babylonians, Egyp¬ 
tians, Jews, Greeks, Romans, and other 
nations of antiquity, until they had reach¬ 
ed a very exalted state of refinement; 
and when these nations descended from 
this condition, or were overthrown by bar¬ 
barians, this art declined or disappeared. 

6. Daring the period of mental dark¬ 
ness, which prevailed between the eighth 
and thirteenth centuries, the practice of 
ornamental gardening had fallen into such 
general disuse, that it was confined exclu¬ 
sively to the monks. After this period, it 
began again to spread among the people 
generally. It revived in Italy, Germany, 
Holland, and France, long before any at¬ 
tention was paid to it in England. 

7. In the latter country, but few culina¬ 
ry vegetables were consumed before the 
beginning of the sixteenth century, and 
most of these were brought from Holland; 
nor was gardening introduced there, as a 
source of profit, until about one hundred 
years after that period. Peaches, pears, 
plums, nectarines, apricots, grapes, cher¬ 
ries, strawberries, and melons, were luxu¬ 
ries but little enjoyed in England, until 
near the middle of the seventeenth cen¬ 
tury. The first hot and ice-houses known 
on the island, were built by Charles II., 
who ascended the British throne in 1660, 
and soon after introduced French garden¬ 
ing at Hampton-Court, Carlton, and Marl¬ 
borough. 

8. About the beginning of the eighteenth 
century, this art attracted the attention of 
some of the first characters in Great Bri¬ 
tain, who gave it a new impulse in that 
country. But the style which they imita¬ 
ted was objectionable, on the ground, that 


the mode of laying out the gardens, plant¬ 
ing and trimming the trees, was too formal 
and fantastical. 

9. Several eminent writers, (among 
whom were Pope and Addison,) ridiculed 
this Dutch mode of gardening, as it wa? 
called, and endeavoured to introduce an 
other, more consistent with genuine taste 
Their views were, at length, seconded by 
practical horticulturists; and those princi¬ 
ples of the art which they advocated, were 
adopted in every part of Great Britain. 
The English mode has been followed and 
emulated, by the refined nations of the 
eastern continent, and by many opulent 
individuals in the United States. 

10. Since the beginning of the present 
century, horticultural societies have been 
formed in every kingdom of Europe. In 
Great Britain alone, there are no less than 
fifty; and, it is satisfactory to add, that 
there are also several of these institutions 
in the United States. The individuals 
who compose these societies, have for their 
objects, the collection and general dissemi¬ 
nation of information on this interesting 
subject, with special reference to the in¬ 
troduction of new and valuable articles of 
cultivation. 

11. The authors who have written upon 
scientific and practical gardening, at dif¬ 
ferent periods, and in different countries, 
are very numerous. Among the ancient 
Greek writers, were Hesiod, Theophrastus, 
Xenophon, and iElian: among the Latins, 
Varo was the first; to whom succeeded, 
Cato, Pliny the elder, Columella, and Pal¬ 
ladium 

12. Since the revival of literature, hor¬ 
ticulture, in common with agriculture, has 
shared largely in the labours of the learn¬ 
ed; and many works, on this important 
branch of rural economy, have been pub¬ 
lished in every language of Europe. But 











THE HORTICULTURIST. 


23 


the publications, on this subject, which at¬ 
tract the greatest attention, are the peri¬ 
odicals under the superintendence of the 
great horticultural societies. Those of 
London and Paris, are particularly distin¬ 
guished. 

13. It is impossible to draw a distinct 
line between horticulture and agriculture, 
since so many articles of cultivation are 
common to both, and since a well regulated 
farm approaches very nearly to a garden. 

14. The divisions of a complete garden, 
usually adopted by writers on this subject, 
are the following: 1st. the culinary gar¬ 
den ; 2d. the flower garden; 3d. the orch¬ 
ard, embracing different kinds of fruits; 
4th. the vineyard; 5th. the seminary, for 
raising seeds; 6th. the nursery, for raising 
trees to be transplanted; 7th. the botani¬ 
cal garden, for raising various kinds of 
plants; 8th. the arboretum of ornamental 
trees; and, 9th. the picturesque, or land¬ 
scape garden. To become skilful in the 
management of even one or two of these 
branches, requires much attention; but to 
become proficient in all, would require 
years of the closest application. 

15. In Europe, the professed gardeners 
constitute a large class of the population. 
They are employed, either in their own 
gardens, or in those of the wealthy, who 
engage them by the day, or year. There 
are some who devote their attention to this 
business, in this country; but these are 
chiefly from the other side of the Atlantic. 
In our Southern States, the rich assign one 
of their slaves to the garden. 

16. Almost every family in the country 
and villages of the United States, has its 
little garden for the production of vegeta¬ 
bles ; in which are also usually reared, a 
few flowers, ornamental shrubs, and fruit 
trees: but horticulture, as a science, is 
studied and practised here by very few; es¬ 


pecially that branch of it called picturesque, 
or landscape. To produce a pleasing eflect» 
in a garden of this kind, from twenty to 
one hundred acres are necessary, accord¬ 
ing to the manner in which the ground 
may be situated. In an area of that ex¬ 
tent, every branch of this pleasing art 
can be advantageously embraced. 

17. Delicate exotic plants, which will 
not bear exposure to the open air during 
the winter, are preserved from the effects 
of the cold, in hot, or green-houses, which 
may be warmed by artificial heat. A hot 
house is exhibited in the representation of 
a garden, at the head of this article. It is 
composed chiefly of window-glass, set in 
sashes of wood. A green-house is usually 
larger; and is designed for the preserva¬ 
tion of those plants requiring less heat. 

18. The vegetables commonly cultivated 
in gardens for the table, are,—corn, potatoes, 
tomatoes, peas, beans, squashes, cucumbers, 
melons, strawberries, raspberries, black¬ 
berries, gooseberries, currants, beets, pars¬ 
nips, carrots, onions, radishes, cabbages, 
asparagus, lettuce, grapes, and various 
kinds of fruits. The flowers, ornamental 
shrubs, and trees, are very numerous, and 
are becoming more so, by accessions from 
the forests and foreign countries. 

19. The scientific horticulturist, in lay¬ 
ing off his garden, endeavours to unite 
beauty and utility, locating the flowers, 
ornamental shrubs, and trees, where they 
will be most conspicuous; and those vege¬ 
tables less pleasing to the eye, in more 
retired situations, yet in a soil and expo¬ 
sure adapted to their constitution. In im¬ 
proving the soil of his garden, he brings 
to his aid the science of chemistry, toge¬ 
ther with the experience of practical men. 
He is also careful in the choice of his fruit 
trees, and in increasing the variety of their 
products, by engrafting, and by inoculation. 









1. Tub Miller belongs to that class of 
employments which relates to the prepa¬ 
ration of food and drinks for man. His 
business consists, chiefly, in reducing the 
farinaceous grains to a suitable degree of 
fineness. 

2. The simplest method by which grain 
can be reduced to meal, or flour, is, by 
rubbing or pounding it between two stones; 
and this was probably the one first prac¬ 
tised. in all primitive conditions of society, 
as it is still pursued among some tribes of 
uncivilized men. 

3. The first machine for comminuting 
grain, of which we have any knowledge, 
was a simple hand-mill, composed of a 
nether stone, fixed in a horizontal position, 
and an upper stone, which was put in mo- 
ttou with the hand, by means of a peg. 


This simple contrivance is still used in 
India, as well as in some sequestered parts 
of Scotland, and on many of the planta¬ 
tions in the Southern States of our Union. 
But, in general, where large quantities of 
grain are to be ground, it has been entirely 
superseded by mills not moved by manual 
power. 

4. The modern corn and flour mill dif¬ 
fers from the ancient hand-mill, in the size 
of the stones, in the addition of an apparatus 
for separating the hulls and bran from the 
farinaceous part of the grain, and in the 
power applied for putting it in motion. 

5. The grinding surfaces of the stones 
have channels, or furrows, cut in them, 
which proceed obliquely from the centre 
to the circumference. The furrows are 
cut slantwise on one side, and perpendieu- 

































THE MILLER. 


25 


larly on the other; so that each of the 
ridges which they form, has a sharp edge: 
and when the upper stone is in motion, 
these edges pass one another, like the 
blades of a pair of scissors, and cut the 
grain more easily, as it falls upon the fur¬ 
rows. 

6. The upper stone is a little convex, 
and the other a little concave. There is a 
trifling difference, however, between the 
convexity and concavity of the two stones: 
this difference causes the space between 
them to become less and less towards their 
edges; and the grain, being admitted be¬ 
tween them, is, consequently, ground finer 
and finer, as it passes out in that direction; 
in which it is impelled, by the centrifugal 
power of the moving stone. 

7. By a careful inspection of the follow¬ 
ing picture, the whole machinery of a com¬ 
mon mill may be understood: 



A, represents the water-wheel; B, the 
shaft to which is attached the cog-wheel 
C, which acts on the trundle-head, D; and 
this, in turn, acts on the moveable stone. 
The spindle, trundle-head, and upper stone, 
aJl rest entirely on the beam, F, which 
can be elevated or depressed, at pleasure, 
6y a simple apparatus; so that the 


distance between tUe stones can be easily 
regulated, to grind either fine or coarse. 
The grain about to be submitted to the ac¬ 
tion of the mill, is thrown into the hopper, 

H, whence it passes by the shoe, or spout, 

I, through a hole in the upper stone, and 
then between them both. 

8. If the flour, or meal, is not to be se¬ 
parated from the bran, the simple grinding 
completes the operation; but when this 
separation is to be made, the comminuted 
grain, as it is thrown out from between the 
stones, is carried, by little leathern buck¬ 
ets fastened to a strap, to the upper end of 
an octagonal sieve, placed in an inclined 
position in a large box. The coarse bran 
passes out at the lower end of the sieve, 
or bolt, and the flour, or fine particles of 
bran, through the bolting-cloth, at differ¬ 
ent places, according to their fineness. At 
the head of the bolt, the superfine flour 
passes; in the middle, the fine flour; and 
at the lower end, the coarse flour and fine 
bran; which, when mixed, is called cane?, 
or shorts. 

9. The best material of which mill¬ 
stones are made, is the burr-stone, which 
is brought from France in small pieces, 
weighing from ten to one hundred pounds. 
These are cemented together with plaster 
of Paris, and closely bound around the cir¬ 
cumference, with hoops made of bar iron. 
For grinding corn or rye, those made of 
sienite, or granite rock, are frequently 
used. 

10. A mill exclusively employed m 

grinding grain consumed by the inhabit¬ 
ants of the neighbourhood, is called a grist 
or custom mill; and a portion of the grist 
is allowed to the miller, in payment for 
his services. The proportion is regulated 
by law; and, in our own country, it varies 
according to the legislation of the different 
States. _ 































26 


THE MILLER. 


11. Mills in which flour is manufactured 
and packed in barrels for sale, are called 
merchant mills. Here, the wheat is pur¬ 
chased by the miller, or by the owner of 
the mill, who relies upon the difference 
between the original cost of the grain, and 
the probable amount of its several products 
when sold, to remunerate him for the manu¬ 
facture, and his investments of capital. 
In Virginia, and, perhaps, in some of the 
other States, it is a common practice 
among the farmers to deliver to the mil¬ 
lers their wheat, for which they receive a 
specified quantity of merchantable flour. 

12. The power most commonly employ¬ 
ed to put heavy machinery in operation, is 
that supplied by water. This is especially 
the case, with regard to mills for grinding 
grain; but when this cannot be had, a 
substitute is found in steam, and animal 
strength. The wind is also rendered sub¬ 
servient to this purpose. The wind-mill 
was invented in the time of Augustus Cae¬ 
sar. During the reign of this emperor, 
and probably long before, mules and asses 
were employed both by the Greeks and Ro¬ 
mans, in turning their mills. The period 
at which water-mills began to be used can¬ 
not be certainly determined. Some writers 
place it as far back as the Christian era. 

13. Wheat flour is one of the staple 
commodities of the United States, and 
there are mills for its manufacture in al¬ 
most every part of the country, where 
wheat is extensively cultivated; but our 
most celebrated flour-mills are on the Bran¬ 
dywine creek, in Delaware, and at Roches¬ 
ter, in New-York. 


14. In our Southern States, hominy is a 
favourite article of food. It consists of the 
flinty portions of Indian corn, which have 
been separated from the hulls and eyes of 
the grain. To effect this separation, the 
corn is sometimes ground very coarsely in 
a mill; but the most usual method is thac 
of pounding it in a mortar. 

15. The mortar is excavated from a log 
of hard wood, between twelve and eighteen 
inches in diameter. The form of the ex¬ 
cavation is similar to that of a common iron 
mortar, except that it is less flat at the 
bottom, to prevent the corn from being 
reduced to meal during the operation. The 
pestle is usually made by confining an iron 
wedge in the split end of a round stick, by 
means of an iron rin£. 

16. The white flint corn is the kind 
usually chosen for hominy; but any kind, 
with the requisite solidity, will answer the 
purpose. Having been poured into the 
mortar, it is moistened with hot water, 
and immediately beaten with the pestle, 
until the eyes and hulls are forced from 
the flinty portions of the grain. The part 
of the corn which has been reduced to 
meal, by the foregoing process, is removed 
by means of a sieve, and the hulls by the 
aid of the wind. 

17. Hominy is prepared for the table by 
boiling it in water for twelve hours, with 
about one-fourth of its quantity of white 
beans, and some fat bacon. It is eaten 
while yet warm, with milk, or butter; or, 
if suffered to get cold, it is again warmed 
with lard, or some fat substance, before it 
is brought to the table. 












THE BAKER. 


1. The business of the Baker consists 
in making bread, rolls, biscuits, and crack¬ 
ers, and in baking various kinds of provi¬ 
sions. 

2. Man appears to be designed by na¬ 
ture, to eat all substances capable of afford¬ 
ing nourishment to his system; but, being 
more inclined to vegetable than to animal 
food, he has, from the earliest times, used 
farinaceous grains as his principal means 
of sustenance. As these, however, can¬ 
not be eaten in their native state, without 
difficulty, means have been contrived for 
extracting their farinaceous part, and for 
converting it into an agreeable and whole¬ 
some aliment. 

3. Those who are accustomed to enjoy 
all the advantages of the most useful in¬ 
ventions. without reflecting on the labour 


expended in their completion, may fancy 
that there is nothing more easy than to 
grind grain, to make it into paste, and to 
bake it in an oven: but it must have been a 
long time, before men came to prepare their 
grain in any other way than by roasting it 
in the fire, or boiling it in water, and form¬ 
ing it into viscous cakes. Accident, at 
length, probably furnished some observing 
person a hint, by which good and whole¬ 
some bread could be made by means of 
fermentation. 

4. Before the invention of the oven, 
bread was exclusively baked in the em¬ 
bers, or ashes, or before the fire. These 
methods, with sometimes a little variation, 
are still practised, more or less, in all parts 
of the world. In England, the poor class 
of people place the loaf on the heated 









































































28 


THE BAKER. 


hearth, and invert over it an iron pot, or 
kettle, which they surround with embers 
or coals. 

5. The invention of the oven must have 
added much to the conveniences and com¬ 
forts of the ancients; but it cannot be de¬ 
termined, at what period, or by whom, it 
was contrived. During that period of re¬ 
mote antiquity, in which the people were 
generally erratic in their habits, the ovens 
were made of clay, and hardened by fire, 
like earthenware; and, being small, they 
could be easily transported from place to 
place, like our iron bake-ovens. Such 
ovens are still in use in some parts of Asia. 

6. There are few nations that do not use 
bread, or a substitute for it. Its general 
use arises from a law of our economy, 
which requires a mixture of the animal 
fluids, in every stage of the process of di¬ 
gestion. The saliva is, therefore, essen¬ 
tial; and the mastication of dry food is 
required, to bring it forth from the glands 
of the mouth. 

7. The farinaceous grains most usually 
employed in making bread, are,—wheat, 
rye, barley, maize, and oats. The flour 
and meal of two of these are often mixed; 
and wheat flour is sometimes advantageous¬ 
ly combined with rice, peas, beans, and 
potatoes. 

8. The component parts of wheat, rye, 
and barley-flour, are,—fecula, or starch, 
gluten, and saccharine mucilage. Fecula 
is the most nutritive part of grain: it is 
found in all seeds, and is especially abun¬ 
dant in the potato. Gluten is necessary to 
the production of light bread ; and wheat 
flour, containing it in the greatest propor¬ 
tion, answers the purpose better than any 
other. The saccharine mucilage is equally 
necessary, as this is the substance on which 
yeast and leaven act, in producing the in¬ 


ternal commotion in the particles of dough 
during fermentation. 

9. There are three general methods of 
making bread: 1st by mixing meal, or 
flour, with water, or with water and milk; 
2d. by adding to the foregoing materials 
a small quantity of sour dough, or leaven, 
to serve as a fermenting agent; and, 3d. 
by using yeast, to produce the same gene¬ 
ral effect. 

10. The theory of making light bread, is 
not difficult to be understood. The leaven, 
or yeast, acts upon the saccharine muci¬ 
lage of the dough, and, by the aid of heat 
and moisture, disengages carbonaceous 
matter, which, uniting with oxygen, forms 
carbonic acid gas. This, being prevented 
from escaping by the gluten of the dough, 
causes the mass to become light and spongy. 
During the process of baking, the increased 
heat disengages more of the fixed air, 
which is further prevented from escaping 
by the formation of the crust. The super¬ 
fluous moisture having been expelled, the 
substance becomes firmer, and retains that 
spongy hollowness, which distinguishes 
good bread. 

11. Many other substances contain fer¬ 
menting qualities, and are, therefore, some¬ 
times used as substitutes for yeast and 
leaven. The waters of several mineral 
springs, both in Europe and America, being 
impregnated with carbonic acid gas, are 
occasionally employed in making light 
bread. 

12. The three general methods of making 
bread, and the great number of materials 
employed, admit of a great variety in this 
essential article of food; so much so, that 
we cannot enter into details, as regards 
the particular modes of manufacture adopt¬ 
ed by different nations, or people. There 
are, comparatively, but few on the globe, 
















THE BAKER. 


29 


in which this art is not practised in some 
way or other. 

13. It is impossible to ascertain at what 
period of time the process of baking bread 
became a particular profession. It is sup¬ 
posed, that the first bakers in Rome came 
from Greece, about two hundred years 
before the Christian era; and that these, 
together with some freemen of the city, 
were incorporated into a college, or com¬ 
pany, from which neither they nor their 
children were permitted to withdraw. 
They held their effects in common, with¬ 
out possessing any individual power of 
parting with them. 

14. Each bake-house had a patron, or 
superintendent; and one of the patrons 
had the management of the rest, and the 
care of the college. So respectable was 
this class of men in Rome, that one of the 
body was occasionally admitted as a mem¬ 
ber of the senate; and all, on account of 
their peculiar corporate association, and 
the public utility of their employment, 
were exempted from the performance of 
the civil duties to which other citizens 
were liable. 

15. In many of the large cities of Eu¬ 
rope, the price and weight of bread, sold 
by bakers, are regulated by law. The 
weight of the loaves of different sizes must 
be always the same; but the price may 
vary, according to the current cost of the 
chief materials. The law was such in the 
city of London, a few years ago, that if a 
loaf fell short in weight a single ounce, 
the baker was liable to be put in the pillo¬ 
ry ; but now, he is subject only to a fine, 
varying from one to five shillings, accord¬ 
ing to the will of the magistrate before 
whom he may be indicted. 


16. In this country, laws of a character 
somewhat similar have been enacted by 
the legislatures of several States, and by 
city authorities, with a view to protect the 
community against impositions; but whe¬ 
ther there be a law or not, the bakers regu¬ 
late the weight, price, and quality, of their 
loaves, by the general principles of trade. 

17. There is, perhaps, no business more 
laborious, than that of the baker of loaf 
bread, who has a regular set of customers 
to be supplied every morning. The twenty- 
four hours of the day are systematically 
appropriated to the performance of certain 
labours, and to rest. 

18. After breakfast, the yeast is pre¬ 
pared, and the oven-wood provided : at two 
or three o’clock, the sponge is set: the 
hours from three to eight or nine o’clock, 
are appropriated to rest. The baking com¬ 
mences at nine or ten o’clock at night; 
and, in large bakeries, continues until five 
o’clock in the morning. From that time 
until the breakfast hour, the hands are en¬ 
gaged in distributing the bread to custom¬ 
ers. For seven months in the year, and, 
in some cases, during the whole of it, part 
of the hands are employed, from eleven to 
one o’clock, in baking pies, puddings, and 
different kinds of meats, sent to them from 
neighbouring families. 

19. In large cities, the bakers usually 
confine their attention to particular branch¬ 
es of the business. Some bake light loaf 
bread only; others bake unleavened bread, 
such as crackers, sea-biscuit, and cakes for 
people of the Jewish faith. Some, again, 
unite several branches together; and this 
is especially the case, in small cities and 
towns, where the demand for different 
kinds of bread is more limited. 

C 2 







THE CONFECTIONER. 


1. The Confectioner makes liquid and 
dry confects, jellies, marmalades, pastes, 
conserves, sugar-plums, ice-creams, can¬ 
dies, and cakes of various kinds. 

2. Many of the articles just enumerated, 
are prepared in families, for domestic use; 
but, as their preparation requires skill and 
practice, and is likewise attended with 
some trouble, it is sometimes better to pur¬ 
chase them of the confectioner. 

3. Liquid and dry confects are preserves 
made of various kinds of fruits and ber¬ 
ries, the principal of which are,—peaches, 
apricots, pears, quinces, apples, plums, 
cherries, grapes, strawberries, gooseberries, 
currants, and raspberries. The fruit, of 
whatever kind it may be, is confected by 
boiling it in a thick clarified syrup of 
sugar, until it is about half cooked. Dry 


confects are made by boiling the fruit a 
little in syrup, and then drying it with 
a moderate heat in an oven. The ancients 
confected with honey; but, at present, the 
more suitable article of sugar is almost 
exclusively employed for this purpose. 

4. Jellies resemble a thin transparent 
glue, or size. They are made by mixing 
the juice of the fruits mentioned in the 
preceding paragraph, with a due proportion 
of sugar, and then boiling the composition 
down to a proper consistence. Jellies are 
also made of the flesh of animals; but 
such preparations cannot be long kept, as 
they soon become corrupt. 

5. Marmalades are thin pastes, usually 
made of the pulp of fruits that have some 
consistence, and about an equal weight of 
sugar. Pastes are similar to marmalades. 










































































THE CONFECTIONER 


31 


in their materials, and mode of preparation. 
The difference consists, only, in their being 
reduced by evaporation to a consistence, 
which renders them capable of retaining 
a form, when put into moulds, and dried 
m an oven. 

6. Conserves are a species of dry con¬ 
fects, compounded of sugar and flowers. 
The flowers usually employed, are,—roses, 
mallows, rosemary, orange, violets, jessa¬ 
mine, pistachoes, citrons, and sloes: orange- 
peel is also used for the same purpose. 

7. Candies are made of clarified suo-ar, 
reduced by evaporation to a suitable de¬ 
gree of consistence. They receive their 
name from the essence, or substance, em¬ 
ployed in giving them the required flavour. 

8. Sugar-plums are small fruits, seeds, 
little pieces of bark, or odoriferous and 
aromatic roots, incrusted with hard sugar. 
These trifles are variously denominated; 
but, in most cases, according to the name 
of the substance inclosed by the incrustation. 

9. Ice-cream is an article of agreeable 
refreshment, in hot weather. It is sold in 
confectionary shops, as well as at the pub¬ 
lic gardens, and other places of temporary 
resort in cities. It is composed, chiefly, of 
milk or cream, fruit, and lemon-juice. It 
is prepared by beating the materials well 
together, and rubbing them through a fine 
hair sieve. The congelation is effected by 
placing the containing vessel in one which 
is somewhat larger, and filling the sur¬ 
rounding vacancy with a mixture of salt 
and fine ice. 

10. Cakes are made of a great variety 


of ingredients; the principal of which are, 
flour, butter, eggs, sugar, water, milk, 
cream, yeast, wine, brandy, raisins, cur¬ 
rants, caraway, lemon, orange, almonds, 
cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice, cloves, and 
ginger. The different combinations of 
these materials, produce so great a variety 
of cakes, that it would be tedious to detail 
even their names. 

11. The confectioner, in addition to 
those articles which may be considered 
peculiar to his business, deals in various 
kinds of fruits and nuts, wnich grow in 
different climates. He also sells a variety 
of pickles, which he usually procures from 
those who make it a business to prepare 
them. 

12. Soda-ivater is, likewise, often sold L, 
the confectioner. This agreeable drink is 
merely water, impregnated with carbonic 
acid gas, by means of a forcing-pump. 
The confectioners, however, in large cities, 
seldom prepare it themselves, as they can 
procure it at less expense, and with less 
trouble, ready made. 

13. Sometimes, the business of the pas¬ 
try-cook is united with that of the confec¬ 
tioner, especially with that branch of it 
which relates to making cakes. Pies and 
tarts consist of paste, which, when baked, 
becomes a crust, and some kind of fruit or 
meat, or both, with suitable seasoning. 
The art of making pies and tarts is prac¬ 
tised, more or less, in every family: it is 
not, therefore, essential to be particular in 
naming the materials employed, or the 
manner in which they are combined. 










THE BREWER, AND THE DISTILLER. 


THE BREWER. 

1. Brewing is the art of preparing a 
liquor which has received the general de¬ 
nomination of beer. This beverage can 
be brewed from any kind of farinaceous 
grain; but, on various accounts, barley is 
usually preferred. It is prepared for the 
brewer’s use, by converting it into malt; 
which is effected by the following process: 

2. The grain is soaked in a cistern of 
water, about two days, or until it is com¬ 
pletely saturated with that fluid. It is 
then taken out, and spread in a layer 
nearly two feet thick, upon a floor. When 
the inside of this heap begins to grow 
warm, and the kernels to germinate, the 
malster checks the rapid growth of the 
grain in that situation, by changing it to 
die outside. This operation is continued, 


until the saccharine matter in the barley 
has been sufficiently evolved, by the natu¬ 
ral process of germination. 

3. The grain is next transferred to the 
kiln, which is an iron or tile floor, perfora¬ 
ted with small holes, and moderately heated 
beneath with a fire of coke, or stone coal. 
Here, the grain is thoroughly dried, and 
the principle of germination completely 
destroyed. The malt thus made is pre¬ 
pared for being brewed, by crushing it in 
a common mill, or between rollers. Malt¬ 
ing, in Great Britain, and in some other 
parts of Europe, is a business distinct from 
brewing; but in the United States, the 
brewers generally make their own malt 

4. The first part of the process of brew¬ 
ing, is called mashing . This is performed 
in a large tub, or tun , having two bot- 

















































THE BREWER. 


33 


toms. The upper one, consisting of several 
moveable pieces, is perforated with a great 
number of small holes; the other, though 
tight and immoveable at the edges, has 
several large holes, furnished with ducts, 
which lead to a cistern beneath. 

5. The malt, designed for one mashing, 
is spread in an even layer on the upper 
bottom, and thoroughly saturated and in¬ 
corporated with water nearly boiling, by 
means of iron rakes, which are made to 
revolve and move round in the tub, by the 
aid of machinery. The water, together 
with the soluble parts of the malt, at length 
pass off, through the holes before mention¬ 
ed, into the reservoir beneath. 

6. The malt requires to be mashed two 
cr three times in succession, with fresh 
quantities of water; and the product of 
each mashing is appropriated to making 
liquors, of different degrees of strength. 

7. The product of the mashing-tun is 
called wort, which, being transferred to a 
large copper kettle, is boiled for a con¬ 
siderable time with a quantity of hops, 
and then drawn off into large shallow cis¬ 
terns, called coolers. When the mixture 
has become cool enough to be submitted to 
fermentation, it is drawn off into the work¬ 
ing tun. 

8. The fermentation is effected with 
yeast, which, acting on the saccharine mat¬ 
ter, disengages carbonic acid gas. This part 
of the process requires from eighteen to 
forty-eight hours, according to the degree 
of heat which may be in the atmosphere. 

9. The beer is then drawn off into casks 
of different dimensions, in which it under¬ 
goes a still further fermentation, sometimes 
called, the brewer's cleansing . During 
this fermentation, the froth, or yeast, works 
out at the bung-hole, and is received in a 
trough, on the edges of which the casks 
nave been placed. The froth, thus dis- 

5 


charged from the beer, is the yeast used 
by the brewers. 

10. The products of the brewery are 
denominated, beer , ale , and porter. The 
difference between these liquors arises, 
chiefly, from the manner in which the malt 
has been prepared, the relative strength 
imparted to each, and the extent to which 
the fermentation has been carried. 

11. There are several kinds of beer; 
such as table beer, half and half, and strong 
beer. They are adapted to use, soon after 
being brewed, and differ from each other 
but little, except in the degree of their 
strength. 

12. Ale and porter are called stock 
liquors, because, not being designed for 
immediate consumption, they are kept for 
a considerable time, that they may improve 
in quality. Porter is usually prepared for 
consumption, by putting it into bottles. 
This is done, either at the brewery, or in 
bottling establishments. In the latter case, 
the liquor is purchased in large quantities 
from the brewer, by persons who make it 
their business to supply retailers, and pri¬ 
vate families. 

13. We have evidence that fermented 
liquor was in use, three thousand years 
ago. It was first used in Egypt, whence 
it passed into adjacent countries, and after¬ 
ward into Spain, France, and England. It 
was sometimes called the wine of barley; 
and one kind of it was denominated Pelu- 
sian drink, from the city Pelusium, where 
it was first made. 

14. Among the nations of modern times, 
the English are the most celebrated for 
brewing good liquors. London porter is, 
especially, m great repute, not only in that 
city, but in distant countries. Much fer¬ 
mented liquor, of the different kinds, is 
consumed in the United States, where it 
is also made in considerable perfection. 







34 


THE DISTILLER. 


THE DISTILLER. 

1. Although alcohol can be extracted from 
any substance containing saccharine mat¬ 
ter, yet sugar-cane, grapes, apples, peaches, 
rye, corn, and rice, on account of their 
abundance, and superior adaptation to the 
purpose, are more commonly used than any 
other. As whiskey is the chief article 
of this kind, manufactured in the United 
States, it will be selected to illustrate the 
general principles of distillation. 

2. Corn and rye are the materials from 
which this liquor is mostly extracted; and 
these are used, either together, or sepa¬ 
rately, at the option of the distiller. The 
meal is scalded, and mashed in a large tub: 
.t is then permitted to stand until it has 
hecome a little sweet, when more water 
is poured upon it, and, at a certain tempe¬ 
rature, regulated in part by the weather, 
a quantity of yeast is added. To aid in 
producing rapid fermentation, a little malt 
is sprinkled on the top. 

3. After a suitable fermentation has 
taken place, the beer , as it is called, is 
transferred to a large close tub, from the 
top of which leads a tube extending to 
the worm in another tub filled with cold 
water. The worm is a long pewter tube, 
twisted spirally, that it may occupy a small 
space. 

4. The beer is heated in the close tub, 
by means of steam, which is conveyed to 
it, from a large kettle or boiler, by a cop¬ 
per or iron pipe. The heat causes the al¬ 
coholic particles to rise like vapour, and 
pass into the worm, where they are con¬ 
densed into a watery fluid, which passes 
out into a receiver. 

5. At first, pure alcohol distils from the 
worm • but the produce becomes gradually 
weaker, until, at length, the spirit in the 
~eer being exhausted, it consists only of 
water condensed from steam. The re¬ 


mains of the beer are given as feed to 
hogs and cattle. 

6. Brandy is distilled from grapes, rum 
from molasses, arrack from rice, whiskey 
from various kinds of grain, peach-brandy 
from peaches, and cider-brandy from apples. 

7. The great variety of articles employ¬ 
ed in the production of different kinds of 
ardent spirits, must necessarily vary the 
process of distillation in some particulars; 
but, in all cases, fermentation and heat are 
necessary to disengage the alcoholic pro¬ 
perties of the saccharine matter, and also 
an apparatus for condensing the same from 
a gaseous to a liquid form. In some coun¬ 
tries, the alembic is used as a condenser, 
instead of a worm. The form of this in¬ 
strument is much like that of the retort 
and when applied, it is screwed upon the 
top of the boiler. 

Spirits which come to market in a 
crude state are sometimes distilled, for the 
purpose of improving their quality, or for 
disguising them with drugs and colouring 
substances, that they may resemble supe¬ 
rior liquors. The process by which they are 
thus changed, or improved, is called recti¬ 
fication. Many distilleries in large cities, 
are employed in this branch of business. 

9. There is, perhaps, no kind of mer¬ 
chandise in which the public is more de¬ 
ceived, than in the quality of ardent spirits 
and wines. To illustrate this, it is only 
necessary to observe, that Holland gin is 
made by distilling French brandy with 
juniper-berries; but most of the spirits 
which are vended under that name, consist 
only of rum or whiskey, flavoured with the 
oil of turpentine. Genuine French brandy 
is distilled from grapes; but the article 
usually sold under that denomination, is 
whiskey or rum coloured with treacle or 
burned sugar, and flavoured with the oil of 
wine, or some kind of drug. 









THE DISTILLER, 


35 


10. The ancient Greeks and Romans 
were acquainted with an instrument for 
distillation, which they denominated ambix. 
This was adopted, a long time afterward, 
by the Arabian alchymists, for making 
their chemical experiments; but they 
made some improvements in its construc¬ 
tion, and changed its name to alembic. 

11. The ancients, however, knew no¬ 
thing of alcohol. The method of extract¬ 
ing this intoxicating substance, was proba¬ 
bly discovered some time in the twelfth 
or thirteenth century; but, for many ages 
after the discovery, it was used only as a 
medicine, and was kept for sale exclusively 
in apothecary-shops. It is now used as a 
common article of stimulation, in almost 
every quarter of the globe. 

12. But the opinion is becoming general, 
among all civilized people, that the use of 
alcohol, for this purpose, is destructive of 
health, and the primary cause of most of 
the crimes and pauperism, in all places 
where its.consumption is common. The 
formation of Temperance Societies, and 
the publication of their reports, together 
with the extensive circulation of periodi¬ 
cal papers, devoted to the cause of tem¬ 
perance, have already diminished, to a 
very great extent, the use of spirituous 
liquors. 

13. Although the ancients knew nothing 
of distilling alcohol, yet they were well 
versed in the art of making wine. We 
read of the vineyard, as far back as the 
time of Noah, the second father of nations; 
and, from that period until the present, the 
grape has been the object of careful culti¬ 
vation, in all civilized nations, where the 
climate and soil were adapted to the pur¬ 
pose. 

14. The general process of making wine 
from graDes, is as follows: The grapes, 
when gathered, are crushed by treading 


them with the feet, and rubbing them in 
the hands, or by some other means, with 
the view to press out the juice. The whole 
is then suffered to stand in the vat, until it 
has passed through what is termed the 
vinous fermentation, when the juice, which, 
in this state, is termed must , is drawn off 
into open vessels, where it remains until 
the pressing of the husks is finished. 

15. The husks are submitted, in hair 
bags, to the press; and the must , which is 
the result of this operation, is mixed with 
that drawn from the vat The whole is 
then put into casks, where it undergoes 
another fermentation, called the spirituous: 
this occupies from six to twelve days. 
The casks are then bunged up, and suffer¬ 
ed to stand a few weeks, when the wine is 
racked off from the lees, and again return¬ 
ed to the same casks, after they have been 
perfectly cleansed. Two such rackings 
generally render the wine clear and bril¬ 
liant. 

16. In many cases, sugar, brandy, and 
flavouring substances, are necessary, to 
render the wine palateable; but the best 
kinds of grapes seldom require any of these 
additions. Wine-merchants often adulte¬ 
rate their wines, in various ways, and af¬ 
terwards sell them for those which are 
genuine. To correct acidity, and some 
other unpleasant qualities, lead, copper, 
antimony, and corrosive sublimate, are 
often used by the dealers in wine; though 
the practice is attended with deleterious 
effects to the health of the consumers. 

17. The wines most usually met with 
in this country, are known by the follow¬ 
ing denominations, viz. Madeira and Tene¬ 
rife, from islands of the same names; 
Port, from Portugal; Sherry and Malaga, 
from Spain; Champagne , Burgundy, and 
Claret , from France; and Hock, from Ger¬ 
many. 









1. Man is designed by nature, to subsist 
on vegetable and animal food. This is 
obvious, from the structure of his organs 
of mastication and digestion. It does not 
follow, however, that animal food is, in 
all cases, positively required. In some 
countries, the mass of the people subsist 
chiefly, or entirely, on vegetables: this is 
especially the case in the East Indies, 
where rice and fruits are the chief articles 
of food. 

2. On the other hand, the people who 
live in the higher latitudes subsist princi¬ 
pally on the flesh of animals. This is pre¬ 
ferred, not only because it is better suited 
to brace the system against the rigours of 
the climate, but because it is most easily 
provided. In temperate climates a due 






I 


proportion both of animal and vegetable 
substances is consumed. 

3. Although the skins of beasts were 
used for the purpose of clothing, soon after 
the fall of man, we have no intimation 
from the scriptures, that their flesh, or that 
of any other animal, was used until after 
the flood. The Divine permission was 
then given to Noah and his posterity, to 
use, for this purpose, “ every moving thing 
that livethbut in the law of Moses, de¬ 
livered several centuries after this period, 
many exceptions are to be found, which 
were intended to apply only to the Jewish 
people. These restrictions were removed, 
on the introduction of Christianity: the 
unbelieving Jews, however, still adhere to 
their ancient law. 

























































































THE BUTCHER. 


O f 


4. The doctrine of transmigration has 
had a great influence in diminishing the 
consumption of animal food. This absurd 
notion arose somewhere in central Asia, 
and, at a very early period, it spread into 
Egypt, Greece, Italy, and finally among 
the remote countries of the ancient world. 
It is still entertained by the heathen na¬ 
tions of Eastern Asia, by the tribes in the 
vicinity of Mount Caucasus, and by some 
of the American savages, and African 
negroes. 

5. The leading feature of this doctrine 
is, that the souls of departed men reappear 
on earth in the bodies of animals, both as 
a punishment for crimes committed during 
life, and as a means of purification from 
sin. This dogma was adopted by the 
Pythagoreans, a sect of Grecian philoso¬ 
phers; and, as a natural consequence, it 
led them, as it has ever done the votaries 
of this opinion, to the veneration of ani¬ 
mals, and to abstinence from their flesh, 
lest they might devour that of some of 
their deceased friends or relatives. 

6. People who dwell thinly scattered in 
the country, rear and slaughter the ani¬ 
mals for the supply of their own tables; 
but in villages, large towns, and cities, the 
inhabitants depend chiefly on the butcher 
for their meat. The animals commonly 
slaughtered are, sheep, carttle, and hogs. 

7. The butchers obtain their animals 
from the farmers, or from drovers, who 
make it a business to purchase them in 
the country, and drive them to market. 
The farmers near large cities, who have 
good grazing farms, are accustomed to buy 
lean cattle, brought from a distance, with 
a view to fatten them for sale. There are 
also persons in the cities, who might, with 
propriety, be called cattle brokers, since 
they supply the butchers of small capital 


with a single animal at a time, on a credit 
of a few days. 

8. Every butcher who carries on the 
business, has a house in which he kills his 
animals, and prepares them for sale. When 
it is intended to slaughter an ox, a rope is 
thrown about his horns, or neck, with 
which he is forced into the slausrhter-house, 
and brought to the floor by the aid of a 
ring. The butcher then knocks him on 
the head, cuts his throat, deprives him of 
his hide, takes out his entrails, washes the 
inside of his body with water, and cuts 
him up into quarters: the beef is now 
ready to be conveyed to the market-house. 
The process of dressing other quadrupeds 
varies but little from this, in its general 
details. The cellular substance of mutton, 
lamb, and veal, is often inflated with air, 
that the meat may look fat and plump. 

9. In large cities and towns, the meat 
is chiefly sold in the market-house, where 
each butcher has a stall rented from the 
corporation. It is carried there in a cart, 
and cut into suitable pieces with a saw, 
knife, and a broad iron cleaver. 

10. In some of the large cities, it is a 
practice among the butchers, to employ 
runners to carry the meat to the houses 
of those customers who may desire this 
accommodation. In villages, where there 
is no market-house, the butcher carries his 
meats from door to door, in some kind of 
vehicle. 

11. Those who follow this occupation 
usually enjoy good health, and, as they ad¬ 
vance in vears, in most cases, become cor- 
pulent. Their good health arises from 
exercise in the open air; and their corpu¬ 
lency, from subsisting principally on fresh 
meats. It is thought, however, that their 
longevity is not so great as that of men in 
many other employments. 







r 



THE TOBACCO PLANTER, AND THE TOBACCONIST. 


THE TOBACCO PLANTER. 

1. Tobacco is a native production of 
America, which was in common use among 
nearly all of the Indian tribes, when this 
continent was discovered by Europeans. 
Its original name among the nations of the 
islands, was yoli; whilst, with those of 
the continent, it was termed petum. The 
Spaniards, however, chose to call it tobacco , 
a term in the Haytian language, which 
designated the instrument in which the 
herb was smoked. 

2. This plant was first introduced into 
Spain, then into Portugal and France, and, 
at length, into other countries of the East¬ 
ern continent. Sir Walter Raleigh car¬ 
ried it from Virginia to England, and taught 
his countrymen the various methods of 
consuming it among the natives. 


3. The introduction of this nauseous 
plant into Europe, was everywhere attend¬ 
ed with ridicule and opposition. Hundreds 
of pamphlets were published, in various 
languages, dissuading from its use in the 
strongest terms. Even James the First, 
king of Great Britain, did not regard it as 
inconsistent with the royal dignity to take 
up his pen on the subject. In his “ Coun¬ 
ter-blast to Tobacco published in 1603, 
occurs the following remarkable passage: 
“ It is a custom loathsome to the eye, hate¬ 
ful to the nose, harmful to the brain; and, 
in the black fume thereof, nearest resem¬ 
bling the horrible Stygian smoke of the 
pit that is bottomless.” 

4. Pope Urban VIII. excommunicated 
those who took tobacco in churches; and 
Queen Elizabeth also prohibited its us© in 













































































































THE TOBACCO PLANTER. 


A.J., , - , - -- ■ - : 

houses of public worship. In 1689, an 
ordinance was published in Transylvania, 
threatening those who should plant tobacco 
with the confiscation of their estates. The 
grand-duke of Moscow, and the king of 
Persia, prohibited its use under the penalty 
of the loss of the nose, and even of life. 
At present, however, the consumption of 
tobacco is looked upon with so much 
-greater indulgence, that all the sovereigns 
of Europe, and most of those of other na¬ 
tions, derive a considerable revenue from 
the trade in this article. 

5. But it is truly astonishing, that the 
discovery of a nauseous weed, of an acrid 
taste, disagreeable odour, and deleterious 
qualities, should have had so great an in¬ 
fluence on the social condition of nations; 
that its culture should have spread more 
rapidly than that of the most useful plants; 
and that it should, consequently, have be¬ 
come an article of extensive commerce. 

6. Of this plant there are several spe¬ 
cies, which differ from each other, in size, 
strength, and flavour. Some one or more 
of these varieties, are cultivated in various 
parts of the world; but especially in North 
and South America, and in the West In¬ 
dies. It is one of the staple productions 
of Maryland, Virginia, Kentucky, and 
Ohio. The whole value of the tobacco 
exported annually from the United States, 
amounts to about five millions of dollars. 

7. The following description of the mode 
of cultivating this plant, and preparing it 
for the tobacconist, is applicable to the 
state of Maryland. A little variation in 
some of the details, would render it appli¬ 
cable to other parts of the world. 

8. A small piece of ground, say one- 
sixteenth of an acre, is prepared by burn¬ 
ing a large quantity of brush upon it. The 
surface is rendered light and even, by 
means of a hoe and rake; and the seeds, 


39 

mixed with ashes, are sown as evenly as 
possible. After they have been covered 
with earth, the ground is trodden down 
with the bare feet. The tobacco beds arc 
made in March, and the plants become 
for the field in eight or ten weeks. 

9. The field, in which the cultivation of 
the crop is to be continued, is ploughed 
two or three times, and then cross-plough¬ 
ed into equal checks, in each of which is 
made a hill. Immediately after a rain, the 
plants are transferred to these hills, in the 
same manner in which cabbages are trans¬ 
planted. While the tobacco is growing, 
the ground is ploughed several times, in 
order to keep it light, and to aid in destroy¬ 
ing the weeds. When the plants are 
nearly grown, the tops are lopped or cut 
off", to prevent them from running to seed, 
and to cause the leaves to grow larger and 
thicker. 

10. In July or August, the tobacco- 
worms begin to make their appearance, 
and to threaten the whole crop with de¬ 
struction. To arrest the ravages of these 
insidious enemies, all hands, both great 
and small, together with all the turkeys 
that can be mustered, are brought into the 
field. These worms are produced from 
the eggs of a large insect, called the horn- 
bug. 

11. The tobacco, when ripe, is cut near 
the ground, and hung on small sticks about 
five feet in length, generally by pegs 
driven into the stalks. These sticks are 
then laid upon poles arranged at proper 
distances from each other, in the tobacco- 
house, shed, or hovel, as the case may be. 
It is then suffered to dry gradually in the 
atmosphere; or a large fire is made in the 
tobacco-house, to effect the drying moie 
rapidly. 

12. The leaves are next stripped from 
the stalks, and tied in small bunches, ac- 








40 


THE TOBACCONIST. 


cording to their quality. This can only 
be done when in order , or rather, when 
the leaves are rendered tough by the ab¬ 
sorption of moisture from the atmosphere. 
These bunches, when the leaves are so 
damp that they will not break, and so dry 
that they will not heat, are packed in 
hogsheads by the aid of a large lever 
press. The tobacco is inspected in public 
warehouses, by men who have been ap¬ 
pointed for the purpose by the public au¬ 
thorities. 


THE TOBACCONIST. 

1. It is the business of the tobacconist 
to convert the leaves of the tobacco plant 
into snuff, cigars, and smoking and chew¬ 
ing tobacco. 

2. Although there may seem to be a 
great variety of snuffs, yet they may be 
all reduced to three kinds, viz. Scotch, 
rappee, and maccouba. These are various¬ 
ly modified by the quality of the tobacco, 
by some little variation in the manufac¬ 
ture, and by the articles employed in 
communicating the desired flavour. 

3. In manufacturing snuff, the tobacco 
is ground in a mill of a peculiar construc¬ 
tion. Before the weed is submitted to this 
operation, it is reduced to a certain degree 
of fineness, by means of a cutting ma¬ 
chine ; and then spread in a heap, one or 
two feat thick, and sprinkled with water, 
that it may heat and sweat. The time 
required in this preparation depends upon 
the state of the weather, and the kind of 
snuff for which the tobacco is designed. 

4. Scotch snuff is made of the strongest 
sort of tobacco, and is put up in bladders 
and bottles, without being scented. Rap¬ 
pee and maccouba are put up in jars and 
bottles; and the former is generally scent¬ 
ed with bergamot, and the latter with the 
ottar of roses. Sometimes, a mixture of j 


several ingredients, agreeable to the olfac¬ 
tory nerves, are employed. 

5. Cigars are composed of two parts, 
called the wrapper and the filling. The 
former is made of pieces of thin leaves, 
cut to a proper shape, and the latter of 
those which are more broken. In all 
cases, the leaves used in the manufacture 
of cigars are deprived of the stems, which 
are reserved, either to be converted into 
inferior kinds of snuff, or for exportation 
to Holland, where they are usually flatten¬ 
ed between rollers, and afterwards cut fine 
for smoking tobacco, to be sold to the poorer 
class of people. 

6. The value of cigars depends chiefly 
on the quality of the tobacco. The best 
kind for this purpose, grows on the island 
of Cuba, near Havana. Tobacco from this 
seed is raised in many other places; and 
such, among tobacconists, is called seed: 
but it passes, among smokers of limited 
experience, for the real Havana. A very 
fine silky tobacco of this sort, grows in 
Connecticut, which is much esteemed. 

7. An expert hand will make five or six 
hundred Spanish cigars in a day, or from 
one thousand to fifteen hundred of those 
composed of Maryland or Kentucky tobac¬ 
co. Making cigars, being light work, is 
well adapted to females, of whom great 
numbers are regularly employed in this 
branch of the business. Tobacco intended 
for the pipe, is cut in a machine; and, after 
having been properly dried, it is put up in 
papers of different sizes. 

8. Chewing tobacco is almost exclusive¬ 
ly prepared from the species of this plant 
which is cultivated in Virginia, chiefly in 
the vicinity of James river. It is better 
adapted than any other, to this purpose, on 
account of its superior strength, and the 
great amount of resinous matter which it 
contains. 











THE TOBACCONIST. 


41 


9. The first operation in preparing chew¬ 
ing tobacco, is to deprive the leaves of the 
stems. The former are then twisted, by 
hand, into plugs of different sizes, or spun 
into a continued thread by the aid of the 
tobacco-wheel , which is a simple machine 
moved by a crank. The thread thus pro¬ 
duced is formed into bunches or twists, 
containing a definite amount of tobacco. 

10. The tobacco having been put into 
the form desired, is moistened with water, 
packed in strong kegs, and then pressed 
with powerful screw-presses. The whole 
process is completed by heating the kegs, 
with their contents, for several days, in an 
oven or a tight room made for the purpose. 
The same change in the quality of tobacco 
is also produced by suffering it to stand 
nine or twelve months, before it is disposed 
of to the consumers. 

11. Snuff is very commonly used in the 
southern states, as a dentifrice, or, at least, 
it is applied to the teeth with this ostensi¬ 
ble object. The application is made by 
means of a small stick, with the fibres 
minutely divided at one end. Although 
the tobacco seems to have the desired 
effect upon the teeth, so far as respects 
their appearance, yet its stimulating and 
narcotic powers are more to be dreaded in 
this mode of using it than in any other. 
Many females ruin their complexion and 
constitution, by rubbing snuff; and the 
deleterious effects of the practice are so 

6 


well known, that few are willing to avow 
it, in their own case. 

12. Tobacco is used, in some one of its 
various forms, by a great majority of man¬ 
kind; and, although it is generally ac¬ 
knowledged to be, in most cases, injurious 
to the constitution, and often destructive 
of health, yet its consumption seems to be 
on the increase. It is one of the objects 
of trade, even in the most obscure parts of 
the world; and its devotees must and will 
have a supply, even though they stint 
themselves in food and clothing. 

13. As regards the irresistible influence 
which this plant assumes over its votaries, 
it may be classed with alcohol and opium ; 
although its effects are not so destructive, 
nor is the expense so considerable: yet 
this is an item by no means unworthy of 
attention, as the aggregate sum annually 
expended for this useless narcotic, in the 
United States, would be sufficient for the 
support of common schools in every part 
of the country. 

14. The general use of tobacco is per 
petuated from generation to generation, by 
the desire, common to children and young 
people, to act and appear like older per¬ 
sons. Few ever begin the use of this nau¬ 
seous weed, because it is agreeable to the 
senses to which it is applied; but because 
they fancy, in their childish simplicity, 
that it confers upon them some additional 
importance 


D 2 









1. Men, in the primitive ages, were clad 
with the skins of animals, until they had 
acquired sufficient skill to supply them¬ 
selves with a better material. It cannot 
be determined, from history, at what time 
cloth besran to be manufactured from ani- 
mal or vegetable fibre; but it is evident, 
that it was done at a very early period; 
probably, long before the flood. 

2. The fibres of the vegetable kind, 
most commonly applied to this purpose, 
are the bark of several kinds of trees, 
together with hemp, flax, and cotton ; and 
those of the animal kingdom are, silk, the 
wool of the sheep and lama, and the hair 
or wool of the goat and camel. 

3. That the general process of manu¬ 
facturing cloth may be perfectly under¬ 
stood, the manner of performing several 


operations must be separately described. 
For the purpose of illustration, cotton, wool, 
and flax, will be selected; because these 
are the materials of which our clothing is 
principally fabricated. The operations of 
making cloth, may be comprised under 
carding and combing , spinning , weaving, 
and dressing. 

4. Carding and Combing .—Wool and 
cotton are carded, with the view of disen¬ 
tangling the fibres, and arranging them 
longitudinally, in small rolls. This is done 
by means of the teeth of two instruments 
called cards, used by hand on the knee, or 
in the carding machine, which acts on the 
same principle, although far more expedi¬ 
tiously. 

5. Machines for carding wool are to be 
found in every district of country in the 






















































































































































THE MANUFACTURER OF CLOTH. 


43 


United States, in which the people manu¬ 
facture much of their woollen cloths in 
their own families. On account of the 
roughness of the fibres of wool, it is ne¬ 
cessary to cover them well with grease, or 
oil, that they may move freely on each 
other, during the carding and spinning. 

6. Long, coarse, or hard wools, used in 
the manufacture of camlets, bombazines, 
Circassians, and other worsted fabrics, are 
not carded, but combed. In England, and 
in other countries where much of this 
kind of wool is used, wool-combiner forms 
a distinct trade. The operation consists, 
chiefly, in drawing the locks through steel 
combs, the teeth of which are similar to 
our common flax-hatchel. The comb is 
heated to a certain temperature, to cause 
the fibres to straighten, and to remove 

. from them the roughness which might 
otherwise cause the cloth made of them 
to thicken in washing, like flannel. 

7. The old method of combing wool, 
however, has been in part superseded by 
the application of machines, the first of 
which was invented by Edmund Cart¬ 
wright, of England, about the year 1790. 
The fibres of flax are arranged, and freed 
from tow, by drawing them through a 
hatchel. 

8. Spinning .—The process of spinning 
consists in twisting the fibres into threads. 
The most simple method by which this is 
effected, is by means of fne common spin¬ 
ning wheel. Of this well-known machine, 
there are two kinds; one of which is ap¬ 
plied to spinning wool, cotton, and tow, and 
the other to spinning flax. 

9. This operation is, in most cases, per¬ 
formed by females, in the following man¬ 
ner. The roll of cotton, or wool, is attached 
to the spindle, which is put in rapid motion 
by a band passing over it from the rim, or 
periphery, of the wheel. While the spin¬ 


ster is turning the wheel with the right 
hand, she brings back from the spindle her 
left, with which she has laid hold ot the 
roll a few inches from the upper end. 
When the yarn thus produced has been 
sufficiently twisted, she turns it upon the 
spindle, and repeats the same operation 
until it is full. This yarn is formed into 
skeins, by winding it upon a reel. 

10. The mode of spinning tow is a little 
different. The material having been form¬ 
ed into bats by hand-cards, the fibres are 
drawn out from between the finders and 

o 

thumb by the twisted thread, while the spin¬ 
ner gradually moves backward. Worsted 
is spun from combed wool nearly in the 
same manner. 

11. The flax or little wheel , is moved 
by the foot, so that both hands of the spin¬ 
ner are used in supplying, disposing, and 
occasionally wetting the fibres, as they are 
drawn from the distaff Two bands pass 
from the periphery of the wheel, each of 
which performs a distinct office: the one 
keeps in motion the spindle, which twists 
the thread; the other moves the fliers, 
which wind the thread upon a spool, as fast 
as it is produced. 

12. Spinning was almost exclusively 
performed in the modes just described, 
until the year 1767, when Richard Hear- 
greaves, of England, invented a machine 
for spinning cotton, which he called a 
jenny. This consisted, at first, of eight 
spindles, moved by a common wheel, or 
cylinder, which was worked by hand. 
The number of spindles was afterwards 
increased to eighty-four. 

13. In 1769, Richard Arkwright, also 
an Englishman, invented the water spin - 
ning frame. The essential and most im¬ 
portant feature of this invention, consists 
in drawing out the cotton, by causing it to 
pass between successive pairs of rollers, 













44 


THE MANUFACTURER OF CLOTH. 


which revolve with different velocities, 
and which act as substitutes for the thumb 
and fingers, as applied in common spinning. 
These rollers are combined with the spin¬ 
dle and fliers of the common flax wheel. 

14. Another machine was invented by 
Samuel Crompton, in 1779. It is called a 
mule , because it combines the principles 
of the two preceding machines. It pro¬ 
duces finer yarn than either of them, and 
has nearly superseded the jenny. Before 
the cotton is submitted to the spinning 
machine, it is prepared by several others, 
by which it is carded, extended, and par¬ 
tially twisted. 

15. In the manufactories, the fine short 
wools, used in the fabrication of broad¬ 
cloths, flannels, and a variety of other 
cloths, are carded by machinery, and spun 
on a stubbing or roving machine , and a 
jenny, or mule, in both of which the spin¬ 
dles are mounted on a carriage, which is 
moved backwards in stretching and twist¬ 
ing the material, and forwards in winding 
the thread upon the spindle. 

16. Worsted stdl continues to be spun, 
in most cases, on the common spinning 
wheel, as it can be done more perfectly in 
this way, than by any other machine which 
has hitherto been invented. Several ma¬ 
chines have been constructed, which spin 
coarse threads of flax very well, and with 
great rapidity; but the materials for fine 
linen fabrics are still spun on the ancient 
flax wheel. 

17. Weaving .—The first step prepara¬ 
tory to weaving, is to form a warp, con¬ 
sisting of a number of threads, which 
extend through the whole piece. To pro¬ 
duce this parallel arrangement, the yarn is 
wound upon spools, which are afterwards 
placed in a frame perpendicularly, by means 
of rod^ jn which they move as upon an 


axle. From these spools, the yarns are 
stretched, upon pegs, to the length of the 
proposed web, and are carried round or 
doubled a sufficient number of times to 
make it to the proper width. The same 
object is more expeditiously effected, by 
winding the yarn spirally on a revolving 
frame. 

18. The next step consists in winding 
the warp on a cylindrical beam, which is 
usually about ten inches in diameter. The 
threads, being put through a harness, com¬ 
posed of moveable parts, called heddles , 
and also through a sley or reed, are fastened 
on the other side to a round stick, from 
which three ropes extend to another cylin¬ 
der, on which the cloth is wound as fast as 
it is woven. 

19. The heddles are suspended from 
cross-pieces, on the top of the loom, by 
means of cords and pulleys; and, during 
the operation of weaving, are moved up 
and down, alternately, by the aid of trea¬ 
dles. This reciprocal motion up and down 
causes the w T eb to open; and, while in this 
position, a shuttle, containing the woof, 
weft , or filling , on a quill or bobbin, is 
passed through from right to left, or from 
left to right; this being done as often as 
the position of the warp is changed. The 
threads of the filling are beaten up by the 
reed, or sley, which is placed in the lay. 

20. Weaving is a business extensive in 
its application, being divided into almost 
as many branches as there are woven 
fabrics. Plain cotton, linen, woollen, and 
twilled cloths, silks, satins, carpets, &c., 
are all woven in looms of some kind, con¬ 
structed on the same general principles. 
Power-looms, driven by water or steam, 
are now generally introduced into the cot¬ 
ton and woollen manufactories, both in 
Europe and in this country. One person 












THE MANUFACTURER OF CLOTH. 


45 


can attend to two of these looms at the 
same time, and each one will weave be¬ 
tween twenty and forty yards in a day. 

21. Dressing .—Cotton fabrics, when the 
webs are taken from the loom, are covered 
with an irregular nap, or down, formed by 
the protruding ends of the fibres. From 
the finest cottons, this is removed, by 
drawing them rapidly over an iron cylin¬ 
der, kept constantly red-hot by a fire within. 
The flame of coal-gas lias recently been 
applied, to effect the same object. 

22. Common domestic fabrics are taken 
from the loom, and, without further pre¬ 
paration, are folded up into pieces for sale. 
Finer articles are usually whitened and 
calendered, before they pass from the hand 
of the manufacturer. Stuffs of all kinds, 
made of vegetable fibres, are now whitened 
by immersing them in a solution of oxy- 
muriate of lime. Cotton and linen goods, 
with a view of making them smooth and 
glossy, are calendered by causing them to 
pass between two steel rollers. 

23. Many of the fine cottons are con¬ 
verted into calicoes, by transferring to them 
various colours. The process by which 
this is done, is called calico-printing, which 
will be described in a separate article. 

24. The texture of the fabrics made of 
worsted, or long wool, is completed, when 
issued from the loom. The pieces are 
subsequently dyed, and then pressed be¬ 
tween heated metallic surfaces, to com¬ 
municate to them the required gloss. But 
weaving does not always complete the 
texture of the stuffs made of the short 
wools. When taken from the loom, the 
web is too loose and open, to answer the 
purposes to which such cloths are usually 
applied. It is, therefore, submitted to 
another process, called fulling. 

25. Fulling , in common with almost 
every other operation pertaining to the 


manufacture of cloth, constitutes a sepa¬ 
rate trade. The art is only applied to 
stuffs composed of wool, or hair, as these 
only possess the properties which render it 
applicable. The practicability of fulling 
cloth, depends on a certain roughness of 
the fibres, which admits of motion in one 
way, and retards it in another. This may 
be more fully understood, by consulting the 
article on making hats. 

26. The cloth, having been prepared by 
a proper cleansing, is deposited in a strong 
box, with a quantity of water and fuller’s 
earth, or soap, and submitted to the action 
of the pestles, or stampers , which are 
moved in a horizontal direction, backwards 
and forwards, by means of appropriate 
machinery. This operation reduces the 
dimensions of the cloth, and greatly im¬ 
proves the beauty and stability of the tex¬ 
ture. The cloth is afterwards dried in the 
open air, on frames prepared for the pur¬ 
pose. 

27. After the cloth has been dyed, a 
nap is raised on one side of it, by means 
of the common teazle. The nap is next 
cut off to an even surface. This was for¬ 
merly done with a huge pair of shears; 
but, within a few years, it has most com¬ 
monly been effected by a machine, the 
essential part of which is a spiral blade, 
that revolves in contact with another 
blade, while the cloth is stretched over a 
bed, or support, just near enough for the 
projecting filaments to be cut off at a uni¬ 
form length, without injuring the main 
texture. Pressing and folding the cloth 
complete the whole process. 

28. A great proportion of the woollen 
fabrics worn in the United States, are 
manufactured in families, part of which is 
sent to the clothiers to be dressed. Much 
cotton yarn, spun at the manufactories, ia 

I purchased for domestic use: formerly, the 








46 


THE MANUFACTURER OF CLOTH. 


raw material was procured, and spun into 
yarn on the big wheel. Coarse linens are, 
also, extensively manufactured in families, 
especially among 1 the German population. 

29. The manufacture of cloth, from 
wool, was introduced into Britain by the 
Romans, some time in the Augustan age. 
At Winchester, they conducted the busi¬ 
ness on a scale sufficiently large to supply 
their army. After the Romans withdrew 
from the island, in the fifth century, the 
art was comparatively neglected, and gra¬ 
dually declined until the reign of Edward 
III. This monarch invited into his do¬ 
minions workmen from Flanders, in which 
country the manufacture had, for a long 
time, been in a flourishing condition. 

30. Shortly after the first immigration 
of the Flemish manufacturers into Eng¬ 
land, an act was passed prohibiting the 
wearing of cloths made in any other coun¬ 
try; and, in the time of Elizabeth, the 
manufacture had become so extensive, that 
the exportation of the raw material was 
forbidden by law. 

31. It is supposed that there are now in 
Great Britain, thirty millions of sheep; 
whose annual produce of wool is worth, on 
an average, about seven millions of pounds 
sterling: to this may be added, five mil¬ 
lions of pounds weight from foreign coun¬ 
tries. This amount is increased in value, 
by manufacturing skill, to twenty or thirty 
millions of pounds. Not less than three 
millions of persons are supposed to be em¬ 
ployed in this branch of British industry. 

32. Both the woollen and cotton manu¬ 
factures have arisen to great importance, 
of late years, in the United States; and, 
from the mechanical skill of our country¬ 
men, the abundance of the raw material, 
and the vast amount of water-power, there 
is every reason to anticipate a rapid and 


continual increase in these divisions of 
American enterprise. 

THE SILK WORM. 

1. Silk is the production of a worm, 
of the caterpillar species, which, in due 
course, passes through several transforma¬ 
tions, and, at length, becomes a butterfly, 
like others of the genus. It is produced 
from an egg, and when about to die, or 
rather again to change its form, spins for 
itself an envelope, called a cocoon. The 
worm then changes to a chrysalis, and, 
after remaining in this state twenty days, 
the butterfly, or moth, comes out, forcing 
its way through the cocoon. The moths, 
or butterflies, eat nothing; and die as soon 
as they have provided for the propagation 
of their species. Enough of these are suf¬ 
fered to come to maturity, to provide a 
sufficient stock of eggs. The rest are 
killed, in a few days after they have spun 
their task, either by heating them in an 
oven, or by exposing them to the rays of 
the sun. 

2. The fibres are W’ound upon a reel. 
To render this practicable, the cocoons are 
put into water heated to a suitable tempe¬ 
rature, which dissolves the gummy sub¬ 
stance that holds the fibres together. A 
number of threads being detached, and 
passed through a hole in an iron bar, form, 
by the aid of the remaining glutinous mat¬ 
ter, one thread, which is wound upon a 
reel into skeins. 

3. The raw silk, thus produced and pre¬ 
pared, is sold to the manufacturers, who 
twist and double the fibres variously, and 
finally form them into threads, for sewing; 
or weave them into a great variety of 
fabrics, which are too well known to need 
particular description here. 

4. According to the ancients, the silk 












THE MANUFACTURER OF CLOTH. 


47 


worm was originally a native of China, and 
the neighbouring parts of Asia, and had 
there been domesticated for a long time 
before it was known in Europe. For many 
years after silk was sold among the nations 
of the West, even the merchants were 
ignorant both of the manner and place of 
its production. 

5. The Greeks became acquainted with 
silk, subsequently to the time of Alexander 
the Great; and the Romans knew little 
of the article, until the reign of Augustus. 
Dresses composed entirely of this material, 
were seldom worn; but the fabrics which 
had been closely woven in the East, were 
unravelled, and recomposed in a looser 
texture, intermixed with linen or woollen 
yarn. 

6. The prodigal Heliogabalus is said to 
have been the first individual in the Roman 
empire, who wore a robe of pure silk. It 
is also stated, that the Emperor Aurelian 
refused his wife a garment of this descrip¬ 
tion, on account of its exorbitant price. 
At that time, as well as at previous pe¬ 
riods, it usually sold for its weight in gold. 

7. A kind of gauze, originally made by 
the women on the island of Cos, was very 
celebrated. It was dyed purple, with the 
substance usually employed in communi¬ 
cating that colour in those days; but this 
was done before it was woven, as in that 
state it was too frail to admit of the pro¬ 
cess. Habits made of this kind of stuff, 
were denominated “ dresses of glass,” for 
the reason, that the body could be seen 
through them. 

8. The Roman empire had been supplied 
with silk through the medium of the Per¬ 
sians, until the time of Justinian, in the year 
555. This emperor, having become indig¬ 


nant at the rapacity of the silk-merchants, 
determined, if possible, to supply his people 
from the insect itself. 

9. After many unsuccessful attempts, 
he, at length, obtained a small quantity of 
the eggs from India, by the assistance of 
two Persian monks, who had contrived to 
conceal them in the hollow of their canes. 
The seeds of the mulberry tree, on the 
leaves of which the worm feeds, were also 
procured at the same time, together with 
instructions necessary for the management 
of the worms. 

10. For six hundred years after the period 
just mentioned, the rearing of these worms 
in Europe was confined to the Greek em¬ 
pire; but. in the twelfth century, Roger, 
king of Sicily, introduced it into that island, 
whence it gradually spread into Italy, 
Spain, France, and other European coun¬ 
tries. 

11. The silk-worm was introduced into 
England, by James the First; but it has 
never succeeded well in that country, on 
account of the dampness and coldness of 
the climate. The manufacture of fabrics 
from silk, however, is there very exten¬ 
sive; the raw material being obtained, 
chiefly, from Bengal, and Italy. In the 
latter of these countries, in France, and 
other parts of Europe, as well as in Asia, 
the manufacture is also extensive. 

12. Some attention has been paid to the 
rearing of silk-worms in the United States, 
and attempts have been made to introduce 
the manufacture of silks. The mulberry 
has been planted, in various parts of the 
Union; and it is highly probable that, in a 
few years, we shall be able to obtain ex¬ 
cellent silks, without sending for them to 
foreign countries. 









THE DYER, AND THE CALICO-PRINTER. 


THE DYER. 

1. The art of dyeing consists in im¬ 
pregnating flexible fibres with any colour 
which may be desired, in such a manner 
that it will remain permanent, under the 
common exposures to which it may be 
liable. 

2. The union of the colouring matter 
with the fibres receiving the dye, is purely 
chemical, and not mechanical, as in the 
case of the application of paints. Wool 
has the greatest attraction for colouring 
substances; silk comes next to it; then 
cotton; and, lastly, hemp and flax. These 
materials, also, absorb dye-stuffs, in differ¬ 
ent proportions. 

3. Previously to the application of the 
dye, the greasy substance which covers 
the fibres of wool, and the gluey matter 


on those of silk, are removed by some kind 
of alkali. Their natural colour is, also, 
discharged by the fumes of sulphur. The 
resinous matter, and natural cdour of cot¬ 
ton and linen, are removed by bleaching. 

4. The materials used in dyeing are 
divided into two classes —substantive and 
adjective. The former communicates du- 

| rable tints, without the aid of any other 
substance previously applied; the latter 
requires the intervention of some agent 
which possesses an attraction, both for the 
colouring matter and the stuff’ to be dyed 
in order to make the colour permanent. 
The substances used for this purpose, are 
usually termed mordants. 

5. Agents capable of acting, in some 
way, as mordants, are very numerous; but 
alumina, alum , the sulphate , or acetate of 












































































































THE DYER. 


49 

themselves to certain colours, such as scar¬ 


iron, the muriate of tin , and nut galls, are 
principally employed. The mordant not 
only fixes the colour, but, in many cases, 
alters and improves the tints. It is always 
dissolved in water, in which the stuffs are 
immersed, previously to the application of 
the dye. Dyeing' substances are also very 
numerous; but a few of the most import¬ 
ant have, in practice, taken precedence of 
the others. 

6. Blue, red, yellow, and black, are the 
chief colours, for which appropriate colour¬ 
ing substances are applied; but, by a judi¬ 
cious combination of these same materials, 
and by a proper application of mordants, 
intermediate hues of every shade are pro¬ 
duced : thus, a green is communicated by 
forming a blue ground of indigo, and then 
adding a yellow, by means of quercitron 
bark. 

7. The blue dye is made of indigo; the 
red dye , of madder, cochineal, archil, Bra¬ 
zil-wood, or safflowers; the yellow dye , of 
quercitron bark, turmeric, hickory, weld, 
fustic, or saffron; the black dye , of the 
oxide of iron, combined with logwood, or 
the bark of the common red, or soft maple, 
with the sulphate, or acetate of iron. The 
dyes made of some of these substances re¬ 
quire the aid of mordants, and those from 
others do not. 

8. In communicating the intermediate 
hues, the different dye-stuffs forming the 
leading colours are sometimes mixed; and, 
at other times, they are made into sepa¬ 
rate dyes, and applied in succession. 

9. In this country, the business of the 
dyer is often united with that of the clo¬ 
thier; but where the amount of business 
will justify it, as in manufactories, and in 
cities or large towns, it is a separate busi¬ 
ness. The dyers sometimes confine their 
attention to particular branches: some dye 
wool only, or silk, while others confine I 


let and blue. The principal profits of the 
dyer, when unconnected with manufactur¬ 
ing establishments, arise from dyeing gar¬ 
ments, or stuffs, which have been partly 
worn. 

10. The origin of the art of dyeing is 
involved in great obscurity, as the ancienta 
have not furnished even a fable, which 
might guide us in our researches. It is 
evident, however, that the art must have 
made considerable progress, long before 
authentic history begins. Moses speaks 
of stuffs dyed blue, purple, and scarlet, 
and of sheep-skins dyed red. The know¬ 
ledge of the preparation of these colours, 
implies > an advanced state of the art at 
that early period. 

11. Purple was the favourite colour of 
the ancients, and appears to have been the 
first which was brought to a state of tole¬ 
rable perfection. The discovery of the 
mode of communicating it, is stated to 
have been accidental. A shepherd’s dog, 
while on the sea-shore, incited by hunger, 
broke a shell, the contents of which stained 
his mouth with a beautiful purple; and 
the circumstance suggested the application 
of the shell-fish as a colouring substance. 
This discovery is thought to have been 
made about fifteen hundred years before 
the advent of Christ 

12. The Jews esteemed this colour so 
highly, that they consecrated it especially 
to the service of the Deity, using it in 
stuffs for decorating the tabernacle, and 
for the sacred vestments of the high-priests. 
The Babylonians,, and other idolatrous na¬ 
tions, clothed their idols in habits of pur¬ 
ple, and even supposed this colour capable 
of appeasing the wrath of the gods. 

13. Among the heathen nations of anti¬ 
quity, purple was appropriated to the use 
of kings and princes, while their subjects 

E 








50 


THE CALICO-PRINTER 


were debarred the use of this favourite 
colour. In Rome, at a later period, purple 
habits were worn by the chief officers of 
the republic, and, at length, by the opu¬ 
lent, until the emperors reserved to them¬ 
selves the exclusive privilege. 

14. There were several kinds of shell¬ 
fish, from which this colouring substance 
was obtained, each of which communicated 
a shade somewhat different from the others. 
The kind collected near Tyre was the best; 
and hence the Tyrian purple acquired es¬ 
pecial celebrity. So highly was it esteem¬ 
ed by the Romans, in the time of Augustus, 
that wool imbued with this colour was sold 
for one thousand denarii per pound, which, 
in our currency, amounts to one hundred 
and sixty-eight dollars. 

15. After all, the boasted purple of anti¬ 
quity is supposed to have been a very 
inferior dye, when compared with many 
which we now possess; and this is only 
one among many instances wherein mo¬ 
dern science has given us a decided supe¬ 
riority over the ancients. 

16. The colour second in repute with the 
people of antiquity, was scarlet This 
colour was communicated by means of an 
insect called coccus , and which is now de¬ 
nominated kermes. Besides the various 
hues of purple and scarlet, several others 
were in some degree of favour; such as 
green, orange, and blue. The use of ve¬ 
getable dyes appears to have been but 
little known to the Romans; but the Gauls 
had the knowledge of imparting various 
colours, even the purple and scarlet, with 
the juice of certain herbs. 

17. The irruption of the northern bar¬ 
barians into the Roman empire, destroyed 
this, with the rest of the arts of civiliza¬ 
tion, in the western parts of Europe; but, 
having been preserved, more or less, in the 
East, it was again revived in the West, 


principally by means of the intercourse 
arising from the Crusades. 

18. Although indigo seems to have been 
known to the ancient Greeks and Romans, 
yet it does not appear to have been used 
for dyeing. The first that was applied to 
this purpose in Europe, was brought from 
India by the Dutch; but its general use 
was not established, without much opposi¬ 
tion from interested individuals. It was 
strictly prohibited in England, in the reign 
of Elizabeth; and, about the same time, in 
Saxony. Many valuable acquisitions were 
made to the materials employed in this 
art, on the discovery of America; among 
which may be enumerated, cochineal, log¬ 
wood, Brazil-wood, and nicaragua, together 
with the soft maple and quercitron barks. 

19. The first book on the art of dyeing 
was published in 1429. This, of course, 
remained in manuscript, as the art of 
printing had not then been discovered: an 
edition was printed in 1510. The authors 
to whom the world is most indebted for 
correct information on this subject, are 
Dufuy, Hallet, Macquir, and Berthollet, 
of France; and Henry, and Bancroft, of 
England;—all of whom wrote in the eigh¬ 
teenth century. 


THE CALICO-PRINTER. 

1. Calico-printing is a combination of 
the arts of dyeing, engraving, and printing, 
wherewith is produced a great variety of 
figures, both in regard to form and colour¬ 
ing. This art is applicable to woven fa¬ 
brics, and chiefly to those of which the 
material is cotton. 

2. The first object, after preparing the 
stuffs, as in dyeing, is to apply a mordant 
to those parts of the piece which are to 
receive the colour. This is now usually 
done by means of a steel or copper cylin¬ 
der, on which have been engraved the 














THE CALICO-PRINTER- 


51 


proposed figures, as on plates for copper¬ 
plate-printing. 

3. During the printing, the cylinder, in 
one part of its revolution, becomes charged 
with the mordant, the superfluous part of 
which is scraped off by a straight steel 
edge, leaving only the portion which fills 
the lines of the figures. As the cylinder 
revolves, the cloth comes into forcible con¬ 
tact with it, and receives the complete 
impression of the figures, in the pale colour 
of the mordant 

4. The cloth, after having- been washed 
and dried, is passed through the colouring 
hath, in which the parts previously printed 
become permanently dyed with the intend¬ 
ed colour. Although the whole piece re¬ 
ceives the dye, yet by washing the cloth, 
and bleaching it on the grass in the open 
air, the colour is discharged from those 
parts not impregnated with the mordant 

5. By the use of different mordants, suc¬ 
cessively applied, and a single dye, several 
colours are often communicated to the 
same piece of cloth: thus, if stripes are 
first made with the acetate of alumina, 
and then others with the acetate of iron, a 
colouring bath of madder will produce red 
and brown stripes. The same mordants, 
with a dye of quercitron bark, give yellow 
and olive, or drab. 

6. Sometimes, the second mordant is ap¬ 
plied by means of engravings, on wooden 
blocks. Cuts designed for this purpose, 
are engraved on the side of the grain, 
and not on the end, like those for printing 
books. 


7. Calico-printing, so far as chemical 
affinities are concerned, is the same with 
dyeing. The difference consists, chiefly, 
in the mode of applying the materials, so 
as to communicate the desired tints and 
figures. The dye-stuffs most commonly 
employed by calico-printers, are indigo, 
madder, and quercitron bark: by a dexter¬ 
ous application of these, and the mordants, 
a great variety of colours can be produced. 
Indigo, being a substantive colour, does 
not require the aid of mordants, but, like 
them, when other dyes are used, is applied 
directly to the cloth, sometimes by the en¬ 
graved cylinder or block, and at others 
with the pencil, by hand. 

8. Calico-printing was practised in India, 
twenty-two centuries age, when Alexander 
the Great visited that country with his vic¬ 
torious army. The operation was then per¬ 
formed with a pencil: this method is still 
used in the East, to the exclusion of every 
other. The art was also practised in Egypt, 
in Pliny’s time. 

9. Calicoes were first brought to Eng¬ 
land in the year 1631. They derive their 
name from the city of Calicut, whence 
they were first exported to Europe. This 
branch of business was introduced into 
London, in the year 1676. Since that 
time, it has been encouraged by several 
acts of parliament; but it never became 
extensive in England, until the introduc¬ 
tion of the machinery for spinning cotton. 
It is supposed, that the amount of cottons 
annually printed in the United States, can¬ 
not be less than twenty millions of yards. 












1. The business, peculiar to the hatter, 
consists in making hats from the fur or 
hair of animals, by the process called felt¬ 
ing. The hair of animals is the only ma¬ 
terial, which can be firmly matted together 
in this way; yet, that of every animal is 
not suitable for this purpose. The fur of 
the beaver, the otter, the seal, the musk¬ 
rat, the rabbit, the hare, the coney, and the 
nutria, together with the wool of the lama, 
sheep, and camel, are employed, to the 
exclusion of almost every other. 

2. The skin of all animals having for, 
is covered with two kinds of hair; the one, 
long and coarse; the other, short, fine, and 
thickly set. The coarse hair is pulled out 
from the skin, by the aid of a shoe-knife, 
and thrown away, while the fine, which is 


the fur, is cut from it with one of a circu¬ 
lar form, such as the saddlers and harness- 
makers use in cutting leather. 

3. In the application of the materials, 
the first object of the hatter is to make the 
body. In the common three, four, and five 
dollar hats, the body is composed of the 
wool of the sheep; but in those of greater 
value, it is usually made of the wool of the 
lama, and different kinds of cheap furs. 
In describing the process of making hats, 
one of the latter kind will be selected. 

4. A sufficient quantity of the materials 
for the body, is weighed out, and divided 
into two equal parts. One of these is 
placed on a table, or, as the hatters call it, 
a hurl. The individual hairs composing 
this portion are separated, and lightly and 
















































































































THE HATTER. 


53 


egularly spread out into a proper form, by 
the vibrations of a bow-string, which is 
plucked with a wooden pin. 

5. The fur is then carefully compressed 
with a flat piece of wicker-work, denomi¬ 
nated a hatter’s basket, and covered with 
a damp piece of linen cloth, in which it is 
afterwards folded, pressed, and worked with 
the hands, until it becomes matted together 
into a bat. This bat is next folded over a 
triangular piece of paper, and formed into 
a conical cap. 

6. When another bat has been made in 
the same way, from the other half of the 
materials, the two are put together to form 
one, which is then worked in the damp 
cloth as before, until it is much contracted 
and matted together. After this, having 
been conveyed to another room, it is rolled 
in a woollen cloth, pressed, rubbed, and 
worked with the hands and a rolling-pin, 
around a kettle of hot water, into which 
it is often plunged during the operation. 
This is called planking. 

7. In this way, the materials are conso¬ 
lidated into felt , and the body contracted 
to the proper size. The reason why the 
process just described produces this effect, 
may be found in the nature of the fibres 
themselves. Upon a close examination, it 
will be observed that these are covered 
with little scales or beards, which admit of 
motion in one direction, but retard it in the 
other. This peculiar formation causes 
them to interlock in such a way, that they 
become closely matted together. 

8. When the body has been dried, and 
shaved on the knee with a sharp knife, to 
free it from projecting filaments, it is stif¬ 
fened with gum-shellac dissolved in alco¬ 
hol, and then steamed in a box, to cause 
the stiffening to set. It is now prepared 
for being napped. 

9. The fur for the nap is prepared on the | 


hurl, like the conical cap first described. 
In applying the nap to the body, the latter 
is wet with hot water, and flakes of the 
former are matted down upon it, by work¬ 
ing it, on the planks, around the kettle. 
After three layers have been put on in this 
way, the cap is beaten, while wet, with 
sticks, to raise the nap, and then drawn 
over a cylindrical block, which gives it the 
general form of a hat. 

10. The nap having been raised with a 
card, it is prepared to be coloured. The 
dye is made, chiefly, of the extract of log¬ 
wood, copperas, and verdigris. The hats, 
to the number of forty-eight, or more, are 
hung upon a wheel, by means of pegs, 
which pass through the centre of the 
blocks. This wheel can be turned, so as 
to keep one half of the hats alternately in 
the dye. After having been properly co¬ 
loured, they are taken from the blocks, 
washed, and dried. 

11. The hat is now prepared for the 
finisher , who first whips up the nap with 
a ratan, and, after having rendered it plia¬ 
ble with steam, draws it over the finishing 
block. The fibres composing the nap are 
properly disposed with a card and brush, 
and rendered smooth and glossy by means 
of a hot iron. The superfluous part of the 
rim is cut off with a blade, placed in a 
gauge. The hat is finished by adding suit¬ 
able trimmings, the nature of which, and 
the mode of application, can be easily 
learned, by examining different kinds of 
hats. 

12. Hats of various colours have been 

worn; but those most in use are black, 
white, and drab. The white hats, which 
are intended only for ladies and children, 
have a nap of rabbits’ fur, selected from 
the white skins. Drab hats are also made 
of stuffs of the natural colour, assorted for 
that puroose. ™ 0 











54 


THE HATTER. 


13. The value of hats depends, of course, 
upon the workmanship, and the cost of the 
materials used in the manufacture. So 
great is the difference in these respects, 
that their price ranges between seventy- 
five cents and fifteen dollars. The woollen 
bodies, used by hatters, are now often 
procured from persons who devote their 
attention exclusively to that part of the 
business. 

14. Woollen cloths have been made in 
England, by the process of felting, without 
spinning and weaving; but, on trial, they 
were found to be deficient in firmness and 
durability. 

15. Some kind of covering for the head, 
either for defence or ornament, appears 
to have been usually worn, in all ages 
and countries, where the inhabitants have 
made the least progress in the arts of 
civilized life. 

16. The form, substance, and colour of 
this article of dress, have been exceedingly 
various in different ages, according to the 
circumstances, or humour, of the wearer. 
The ancient Persians wore turbans, similar 
to those of the modern Turks; and the 
nations inhabiting the Indian Peninsula 
wore a kind of head-dress so large, that it 
divested the person of all proportion. 

17. The imperial turban is said to have 
been composed of a great many yards of 
muslin, twisted and formed into a shape 
nearly oval, and surmounted with a woollen 
cap, encircled with a radiated crown. The 
turban of the prime minister was smaller 
in its dimensions, but of greater altitude. 
The chief magi, on account of his superior 
eminence, wore a higher turban than those 
of the monarch and minister united. Those 
worn by the inferior magi, were regulated 
oy the dignity of the stations which they 
field 

18 The Jewish people, and the neigh¬ 


bouring nations, borrowed the turban from 
the Persians; but, at a later period, they 
very common'y adopted the cap which the 
Romans were accustomed to give to their 
slaves, on their manumission. 

19. The ancient helmet, made of steel, 
brass, and sometimes of more costly mate¬ 
rials, was worn as a piece of defensive 
armour in war, instead of the ordinary 
coverings, used while engaged in peaceful 
occupations. 

20. Roman citizens went bare-headed, 
except upon occasions of sacred rites, 
games,and festivals; or, when engaged in 
travelling or war. They were accustomed, 
however, in the city, to throw over their 
head the lappet of their gown, as a screen 
from the wind or sun. The people of 
Scotland used to wear a kind of bonnet, as 

, in some parts of that country they do at 
I the present time ; and the English, before 
! the invention of felt hats, covered the head 
with knit caps and cloth hoods, and some¬ 
times with hats made of thrummed silk. 

21. The Chinese do not wear hats, but 
use a cap of a peculiar structure, which 
the laws of civility will not allow them to 
put off in public. The form and material 
of this is varied with the change of the 
seuson. That used in summer is shaped 
like a cone, is made of a beautiful kind of 
mat, and lined with satin; to this is added, 
at the top, a large tuft of red silk, which 
falls all round to the lower part of the 
cap, and which fluctuates gracefully on all 
sides, while the wearer is in motion. The 
kind worn in winter is made of shaggy 
cloth, bordered with some kind of fur, and 
ornamented in a similar manner. 

22. Head-dresses, from their variety, sim¬ 
plicity, and mutability, were little regu¬ 
lated, in a commercial or manufacturing 
point of view, until the introduction of felt 
hats, which has occasioned a uniformity in 













THE HATTER. 


55 


this article of dress, unknown in former 
ages. 

23. Curiosity is naturally excited to be¬ 
come acquainted with the particulars of 
their invention, and the subsequent stages 
of improvement in the manufacture. But 
the operation of individual interest, so 
generally connected with the useful arts, 
seems to have concealed the whole in ob¬ 
scurity ; and little information on the sub¬ 
ject, can now be obtained. 

24. The hatters have a tradition, that 
the art of felting originated with St. Cle¬ 
ment, the fourth bishop of Rome. Under 
this impression, in Catholic countries, they 
adopt him as their patron saint, and hold 
an annual festival in his honour. The 
principle of felting is said to have been 
suggested to his mind, by the following 
circumstance: while fleeing from his per¬ 
secutors, his feet became blistered, and, 
to obtain relief, he placed wool between 
them and his sandals. On continuing his 
journey, the wool, by the perspiration, mo¬ 
tion, and pressure of the feet, assumed a 
compact form. 

25. Notwithstanding this tradition, it 
appears that felt hats were invented at 
Paris, by a Swiss, about the commence¬ 
ment of the fifteenth century; but they 
were not generally known, until Charles 
the .Seventh made his triumphal entry into 
Rouen, in the year 1492; when he as¬ 
tonished the people, by wearing a hat, lined 
with red silk, and surmounted with a plume 
of feathers. 


26. When some of the clergy first adopt¬ 
ed this article of dress, it was considered 
an unwarrantable indulgence: councils 
were held, and regulations published, for¬ 
bidding any priest, or monk, to appear 
abroad, wearing a hat; and enjoining 
them to keep to the use of chaperons, or 
hoods, made of black cloth, with decent 
cornets; if they were poor, they were, at 
least to have cornets fastened to their hats, 
upon penalty of suspension and excommu¬ 
nication. 

27. At length, however, the pope per¬ 
mitted even the cardinals to wear hats; 
but enjoined them to wear those of a red 
colour, at public ceremonials, in token that 
they were ready to spill their blood fol 
their religion. 

28. In England, considerable opposition 
was made to the use of the hat. By a 
statute, enacted in the thirteenth year of 
the reign of Elizabeth, every person be¬ 
tween certain ages was obliged, on Sun¬ 
days and holidays, to wear a woollen cap, 
made by some of the cappers of that king¬ 
dom, under the penalty of three shillings 
and four-pence for every day’s neglect. 
This law continued in force, for about 
twenty-five years. The manufacture of 
hats was commenced, in England, in the 
time of Henry the Eighth, by Dutchmen 
and Spaniards. 

29. Hats made of plaited straw, grass, 
or chip, are much used in the summer 
and caps, of cloth or fur, are now frequentl; 
substituted for hats, in cold weather. 








THE ROPE-MAKER. 


1. Ropes may be made of any vegetable 
substance, which has a fibre sufficiently 
flexible and tenacious. The Chinese, and 
other orientals, in making ropes, use the 
ligneous parts of certain bamboos and 
reeds, the fibrous covering of the cocoa- 
nut, the filaments of the cotton pod, and 
the leaves of certain grasses; but the bark 
of plants and trees, is the most productive 
of fibrous matter suitable to this manufac¬ 
ture. That of the linden-tree, the willow, 
and the bramble, is frequently used. In 
Europe and America, however, the fibres 
of hemp and flax are more frequently em¬ 
ployed, for this purpose, than any other 
material. 

2. The operations of rope-making are 
commonly performed in rope-ioalks , which 
ore sometimes more than a quarter of a 


mile in length. These are usually cover¬ 
ed with a slight shed, the nature and ap¬ 
pearance of which are well exhibited in 
the preceding picture. 

3. The first part of the process consists 
in spinning the material into yarn. The 
principle on which this is effected, is«the 
same as that by which cotton or wool is 
drawn out and twisted into threads, al¬ 
though the machinery, and the mode of 
operating, are different. 

4. The kind of wheel employed in spin¬ 
ning rope-yarn, is also exhibited in the 
cut A band passes around the periphery, 
and over the semicircle above it, in which 
is placed a number of wheels, the pivots 
of which terminate, on the other side, in 
small hooks. 

5. The spinner, having a quantity of the 













































































THE ROPE-MAKER. 


57 


material properly disposed about the waist, 
attaches a number of fibres to one of the 
hooks, which, being 1 put in motion by the 
band passing over the whirl, twists them 
rapidly into yarn: the part already twisted 
draws along with it more fibres from the 
bundle, and, as the spinner is regulating 
their uniform arrangement, he walks back¬ 
ward towards the other end of the walk. 

6. When the thread has been spun to 
the proposed length, the spinner cries out 
to another, who immediately takes it off 
from the hook, gives it to a third person, 
and, in turn, attaches his own fibres to the 
same hook. In the meantime, the first 
spinner keeps fast hold of the end of his 
yarn, to prevent it from untwisting or 
doubling; and as it is wound on the reel, 
he proceeds up the walk, keeping the yarn 
of an equal tension throughout. 

7. The second part of the process con¬ 
sists in forming the yarn into various kinds 
of ropes. The component parts of cord¬ 
age, are called strands; and the operation 
of uniting them with a permanent twist, is 
called laying, when applied to small ropes, 
and closing, when applied to cables or 
other large ropes. 

8. The simplest twist is formed of two 
strands. The thread used by sail-makers, 
and pack-thread, furnish examples of this 
kind: but cordage, with two strands, is not 
much used; that with three, is the most 
usual. Lines and cords lqss than one and 
a half inches in circumference, are laid by 
means of the spinning-wheel. Prepara¬ 
tory to this operation, the workman fastens 
the hither end of the yarns to separate 
whirl-hooks, and the remote ends to the 
hook of a swivel, called the loper. 

9. The strands having been properly 
distended, the spinning-wheel is turned in 
the same direction as when twisting the 

8 


yarns. A further twisting of the strands, 
during this part of the process, is prevent¬ 
ed by the motion of the loper, which gives 
way to the strain, and, at the same time, 
causes the strands to entwine about each 
other, and form a cord. To prevent them 
from entwining too rapidly, an instrument 
is interposed, which, from its form, is called 
the top: it has two or more notches, which 
terminate at the apex, and a handle called 
a staff. As the top is moved from the loper 
to the wheel, it regulates the degree of 
twist which the cord or rope is to receive. 

10. The principle on which large cord¬ 
age is laid, or closed, is the same, although 
some part of the machinery is different. 
The strands for large ropes and cables are 
formed of many yarns, and require con¬ 
siderable hardening. This cannot be done 
with whirls driven by a wheel-band : it 
requires the power of a crank, turned by 
hand, or by some other considerable force. 
The strands, also, when properly hardened, 
become very stiff, and, when bent round 
the top, cannot transmit force enough to 
close the unpliant rope: it is, therefore, 
necessary that the loper, also, be moved by 
a crank. 

11. Cordage, which is to be exposed to 
the alternate action of air and water, is 
usually tarred. The application of this 
substance is made, in most cases, while 
the material is in a state of yarn. In ef¬ 
fecting this object, the threads are drawn 
through boiling tar, and then passed be¬ 
tween rollers, or through holes surround¬ 
ed with oakum, to remove the superfluous 
tar. In like manner, ropes and cables are 
superficially tarred. 

12. Various improvements have been 
made, in the machinery for performing the 
different operations of rope-making; but, 
these not having been generally adopted, 













58 


THE ROPE-MAKER. 


it is unnecessary to notice them more par¬ 
ticularly ; especially, as they do not affect 
the general principles of the art. 

13. Within a few years, cotton-yarn has 
been employed in the manufacture of ropes; 
but this material has not yet been suffi¬ 
ciently tested, to determine its fitness for 
the purpose. A kind of vegetable fibre 
brought from Manilla, and hence called 
Manilla hemp, is very extensively applied 
in making ropes, and, for some purposes, is 
preferred to other materials. 

14. The intestines of animals are com¬ 
posed of very powerful fibres, and those of 
sheep and lambs are manufactured into 
what is called cat-gut, for the use of mu¬ 
sical instrument-makers, hatters, watch¬ 
makers, and a variety of other artificers. 
Animal hair, as that from the tail and 
mane of horses, is frequently employed 
as the material for ropes; and such are 
durable, elastic, and impervious to moisture. 
They, however, are not applicable in cases 
where the rope is subject to considerable 
friction. 

15. Hemp is cultivated in various parts 
of the world, and especially in Russia, 
whence it is exported to other countries in 
great quantities. It is also produced, to a 
considerable extent, in the state of Ken¬ 
tucky, and many other parts of the United 
States. Flax is still more generally culti¬ 
vated, than hemp; but its chief application 
is to the manufacture of cloth, as it does 
&ot answer well for any cordage larger 


than a bed-cord. The formation of cloth 
from hemp, is also very common; and in 
this case, the yarn for the coarse cloths is 
spun on the rope-maker’s wheel, in the 
manner already described. The cloth is 
generally used for making bags, sacking 
bottoms for beds, and sails for vessels. 

10. Rope-making is a manufacture oi 
general utility, as cordage of some kind is 
used more or less in every family in all 
civilized communities: nor are there many 
trades capable of being carried on, with 
convenience, without it. But the great 
utility of cordage, in all its varieties, is most 
conspicuous in the rigging and equipment 
of vessels; and the extensive demand for 
it, in this application, renders rope-making 
one of the most important and extensive 
of the primitive trades. 

17. Nor does the utility of cordage end 
with its application to the purposes for 
which it was originally designed. Old 
ropes are converted into oakum, by un¬ 
twisting and picking them to pieces. The 
oakum thus produced is driven into the 
seams of vessels, to render them water¬ 
tight. 

18. As regards the invention of this art, 
nothing can be gathered from ancient re¬ 
cords. We only know, in general, that 
cordage was in considerable use among 
the nations of antiquity, especially among 
the Greeks and Romans, who probably 
learned its application to rigging vessels 
from the Phoenicians. 






THE TAILOR. 


1. The business of the tailor consists, 
principally, in cutting’ out, and making 1 2 3 
clothes for men and boys; together with 
habits and cloaks, for ladies. It is usual 
for persons who carry on this business, in 
cities and large towns, to keep a stock of 
cloths and other stuffs adapted to the sea¬ 
son, which they make up into garments, to 
the order of customers. In such cases, they 
are termed merchant tailors. 

2. The operation, preparatory to cutting 
out the cloth for a garment, is that of 
taking the measure of the person for whom 
it is designed. This is done with a nar¬ 
row strip of paper, or parchment, and the 
dimensions are either marked on the mea¬ 
sure with the scissors, or entered in a pat- 
tern-book kept for the purpose. 

3. The cloth is cut to the proper shape, 


|| with a large pair of shears. This is per- 
j formed, either by the individual who car¬ 
ries on the business, or by a foreman. The 
parts are sewed together, and the trim¬ 
ming applied, by means of thread and silk: 
this is commonly done by those who devote 
their attention to this branch of the trade. 
It sometimes happens, however, that the 
same person performs the whole of the 
work: this is particularly the case in 
country places, where the business is very 
limited in extent. 

4. Females often serve an apprenticeship 
to this business. Many of them learn to 
cut out, and make with skill, certain kinds 
of garments; and are afterwards employed 
in families, or by the tailors. Most of the 
ready-made clothing, kept for sale in cities 
j is made up by females. 





















































































































60 


THK TAILOR 


5. The instruments employed in per¬ 
forming the operations of the tailor, are 
few and simple: the principal of these are 
the shears, the scissors, the needle, the 
thimble, the bodkin, the goose, and the 
press-board. 

6. The great art of a master-tailor con¬ 
sists in fitting the dress to his customer, in 
such a manner as to conceal any defect of 
form, and display his person to the best 
advantage. He should, therefore, be a 
good judge of the human figure; as from 
this knowledge arises, chiefly, the supe¬ 
riority of one workman over another, in 
this branch of the business. 

7. The first hint on the art of clothing 
the human body, was given to man by the 
Deity himself; for we read in the Scrip¬ 
tures, that “ Unto Adam and to his wife 
the Lord God made coats of skins, and 
clothed them.” From that time to the 
present, the art of cutting out garments, 
and of sewing their different parts together, 
has been practised, more or less, in every 
place, where there has been any degree of 
civilization. 

8. For a long time, it is probable that 
thongs and the sinews of animals were 
used, for want of thread made of silk or 
vegetable fibre; and, doubtless, the same 
necessity caused the substitution of pointed 
bones and thorns, instead of needles. Such 
rude materials and instruments are still 
employed for similar purposes, by savage 
nations. The dresses of the people of 
Greenland are sewed together with thongs 
made of the intestines of the seal, or of 
some fish, which they have the address to 
cut fine, after having dried them in the 
air; and even the inhabitants of Peru, al¬ 
though considerably advanced in civiliza¬ 
tion, when that country was first visited by 
the Spaniards, made use of long thorns, in 
sewing and fixing their clothes. 


9. We have no means of determining 
at what period of the world this art was 
first practised, as a particular profession. 
We know, in general, that the dress of 
the ancients was usually more simple in 
its construction, than that of the people of 
modern times; and, consequently, it re¬ 
quired less skill to put the materials in the 
required form. It may," therefore, be in¬ 
ferred, that either the females or the slaves 
of each family usually made up the clothing 
of all its members. 

10. The distinguishing dress of the Ro¬ 
mans was the toga , or gown; as that of 
the Greeks was the pallium, or cloak. The 
toga was a loose woollen robe, and covered 
nearly the whole person: it was round 
and close at the bottom, and open at tha 
top, having no sleeves, but only a large 
flap, or lappet, which was either thrown 
over the left shoulder, or over the head, 
to protect it from the heat or cold. 

11. The Romans, at an early period of 
their history, used no other dress, and it 
was also, at that time, worn by the women. 
Afterwards, they wore, under the toga, a 
white woollen vest called tunica , which 
extended a little below the knee: at first 
it was without sleeves. Tunics reaching 
to the ancles, or having sleeves, were 
reckoned effeminate; but under the em¬ 
perors, they became fashionable. 

12. The toga was usually assumed at 
the age of seventeen. Until then, the 
youth wore a kind of gown, bordered with 
purple, denominated toga prcctexta; and 
such a garment was also worn by females, 
until they were married. The youthful 
dress was laid aside, and the toga virilis, or 
manly toga, assumed with great solemnity ; 
as, by this act, the individual assumed 
the responsibility of a citizen. The toga 
was worn chiefly in the city, and only by 
Roman citizens. 









THE MILLINER, AND THE LADY’S DRESS-MAKER. 


THE MILLINER. 

1. The milliner is one who manufac¬ 
tures and repairs bonnets and hats, for la¬ 
dies and children. Her business requires 
die use of pasteboard, wire, millinette, 
silks, satins, muslins, ribands, artificial 
flowers, spangles, and other materials, too 
numerous to be mentioned. 

2. The first part of the process of making 
a hat, or bonnet, consists in forming a 
crown of millinette; which operation is 
performed on a block, of a suitable size and 
shape: and to this is applied pasteboard, 
or millinette, edged with wire. The foun¬ 
dation having been thus laid, it is usually 
cevered and lined with some of the mate¬ 
rials just enumerated, and finished by ap¬ 
plying to it the trimmings required by the 
fashion, or by the individual customer 


3. Ladies’ hats are also made of rye 
straw, and a kind of grass, which grows in 
Italy: those made of the latter material 
are called Leghorns , from the name of 
the city, in or near which they are princi¬ 
pally made. A few years since, these nad 
almost superseded those made of straw; 
but the latter, of late, have nearly regain¬ 
ed their former ascendency. 

4. In the United States, and likewise in 
various parts of Europe, there are several 
establishments for making straw hats, in 
which the proprietors employ females to 
perform the whole labour. The straw is 
first cut into several pieces, so as to leave 
out the joints, and then whitened by 
smoking them with the fumes of brim¬ 
stone. They are next split longitudinally 
into several pieces, by a simple machine, 

F 






































































































































































62 


THE LADY’S DRESS-MAKER 


and afterwards plaited with the fingers 
and thumbs. The braid, or plait, thus 
produced, is formed into hats, according 
to the prevailing fashion. 

5. Great quantities of straw are, also, 
plaited in families, especially in the New- 
England states, and sold to neighbouring 
merchants, who, in turn, dispose of it to 
those who form it into hats. The milli¬ 
ners usually keep a supply of Leghorn and 
straw hats, which they line and trim ac¬ 
cording to the fancy of their customers. 

6. Head-dresses were probably used 
nearly as early as any other part of dress; 
and their form and material have likewise 
been equally variable. In the early days 
of Rome, the head-dress of the women of 
that city was very simple; and when they 
went abroad, which was seldom, they co¬ 
vered their faces with a veil; but when 
riches and luxury had increased, dress 
became, with many, the principal object 
of attention; hence, a woman's toilet and 
ornaments were called her world. 

7. The head-dresses of the ladies, in 
various parts of Europe, especially in the 
eighteenth century, were particularly ex¬ 
travagant; being sometimes so high, that 
che face seemed to be nearly in the centre 
of the body. In 1714, this fashion was at 
its height, in France; but two English 
ladies, visiting the court of Versailles, in¬ 
troduced the low head-dresses of their own 
country. 

8. The high head-dresses had no sooner 
fallen into disuse in France, than they 
were adopted in England, and even carried 
to a greater degree of extravagance. To 
build one of these elevated structures in 
the fashionable style, both the barber and 
milliner were necessary. The head-dresses 
of the ladies of the present age, are cha¬ 
racterized by great simplicity, when com¬ 


pared with those of several periods in pre¬ 
ceding ages. 


THE LADY’S DRESS MAKER. 

1. This business is nearly allied to the 
foregoing, and is, therefore, often carried 
on in conjunction with it. This is espe¬ 
cially the case, in villages and small towns, 
where sufficient business cannot be obtain¬ 
ed in the exclusive pursuit of one branch. 

2. The customers of the lady’s dress¬ 
maker, are not always easily pleased, as 
they frequently expect more from her skill 
than it is possible to accomplish. She, 
however, can do much towards concealing 
the defects of nature; and, by padding and 
other means, can sometimes render the 
person tolerably well proportioned, when, 
in its natural shape, it would be quite inele¬ 
gant It is to be regretted, however, that 
dress-makers are guided by fashion and 
whim, in moulding the external form of 
females, rather than by the best specimens 
of the human figure, as exhibited by emi¬ 
nent painters and sculptors. 

3. The dress-maker should have some 
acquaintance with the anatomy and func¬ 
tions of those parts to which pressure is 
usually applied: for, who that knows the 
structure, size, and office of the liver, and 
other internal organs of digestion and vi¬ 
tality, would venture to apply to them a 
compressive force, calculated to interfere 
most seriously, if not dangerously, with 
their healthful action! 

4. The fashions for ladies’ dresses are 
chiefly procured from France, and the 
dress-makers from that country are, there¬ 
fore, often preferred by fashionable ladies: 
sometimes, however, a dress-maker, having 
a name with a French termination, will 
answer the purpose. 










1 



1. It is the business of the barber to cut 
and dress the hair, to make wigs and false 
curls, and to shave the beards of other 
men. In ancient times, he used also to 
trim the nails; and even at the present 
day, in Turkey, this is a part of his em¬ 
ployment. 

2. The precise period when men began 
to shave their beards, is not certainly 
known. It appears that the practice was 
common among the Israelites, in the time 
of Moses; as that legislator has left on 
record a prohibitory law concerning it. 
They probably borrowed the custom from 
the Egyptians. It is stated by Plutarch, 
that Alexander the Great ordered his men 
to be shaved, that their enemies might not 
Jav hold of their beards in time of battle. 


Before this time, however, many of the 
Greeks shaved their beards. 

3. The practice does not appear to have 
been introduced amongst the ancient Ro¬ 
mans, until about the year 296 before 
the Christian era, when Paulus Ticinius 
Maenas brought to Rome a number of bar¬ 
bers from Sicily. Scipio Africanus was 
the first man who shaved his beard every 
day. 

4. At first, the barbers had no shops, but 
shaved their customers at the corners of 
the streets. After a while, they followed 
their vocation in shops, or shades; and, at 
this period, it was customary for females to 
officiate in the various branches of the art 
These places, however, were frequented 
only by the poorer class of the people, as 







































































































64 


THE BARBER 


opulent families generally kept slaves for 
the performance of these duties. The day 
on which a young Roman first cut off his 
beard, was celebrated by him and his 
friends as one of peculiar interest; and 
this much-desired indication of manhood 
vvas consecrated to some one of the gods, 
generally to Jupiter Capitolinus. 

5. The return of barbarism, in the fifth 
and sixth centuries, banished this custom 
from the western empire of Rome; nor 
was it again revived until the seventeenth 
century. During the reigns of Louis XIII. 
and Louis XIV. of France, both of whom 
ascended the throne in boyhood, the cour¬ 
tiers and fashionable people began to use 
the razor, that they might appear with 
smooth chins, and thus resemble, in this 
particular, the youthful monarchs. From 
France, the fashion, at length, spread all 
over Europe. At one time, in the reign of 
the English queen Elizabeth, the fellows 
of Lincoln’s Inn were compelled by statute 
to shave their beards at least once in two 
weeks: omission was punished with fine, 
loss of commons, and finally with expul¬ 
sion. 

6. The custom of shaving was intro¬ 
duced into Russia by Peter the Great, who 
compelled his subjects to pay a tax for 
the privilege of retaining their beards. 
This singular impost was exceedingly un¬ 
popular, and excited greater complaints 
amongst the people, than any other mea¬ 
sure of that emperor. The decree was 
rigidly enforced, and every one who would 
not, or could not, pay the tax, was forcibly 
deprived of this favourite ornament, if he 
would not remove it voluntarily. Some 
of the people saved the sad trimmings of 
their chins; and, that they might never 
be entirely separated from these precious 
relics, ordered that they should be depo¬ 
sited with their bodies in their coffins. 


7. Among the European nations that 
have been curious in whiskers, the Span¬ 
iards have been particularly distinguished; 
and the loss of honour among them used 
to be punished by depriving the individual 
of his whiskers. 

8. The Portuguese were but little, if at 
all, behind the Spaniards, in their estimate 
of these valuable ornaments. As an evi¬ 
dence of this, it is stated, that in the reign 
of Catharine, Queen of Portugal, the brave 
John de Castro, having taken the castle of 
Diu in India, and being afterwards in 
want of money, applied to the inhabitants 
of Goa to loan him one thousand piastres, 
and, as security for that sum, sent them 
one of his whiskers, telling them that, 
“ All the gold in the world cannot equal 
the value of this natural ornament of my 
valour.” The people, in admiration of his 
magnanimity, sent him the money, and, at 
the same time, returned his incomparable 
whisker. 

9. In the reign of Louis XIII. of France, 
whiskers attained the highest degree of 
favour. They also continued in fashion 
during the early part of the succeeding 
reign: Louis XIV. and the great men of 
France, took a pride in wearing them. It 
was no uncommon thing, at that time, for 
the ladies to comb and dress the whiskers 
of their beaux; and the men of fashion 
were particular in providing whisker-wax, 
and every article necessary to this agreea¬ 
ble pastime. 

10. The whiskers of the Chinese phi¬ 
losopher Confucius, attached to his idol, 
which is preserved by his countrymen, are 
supposed to be capable of conferring upon 
those who might wear them, a portion of 
the wisdom and manly beauty of that illus¬ 
trious sage. Great care, however, is taken 
that none shall enjoy these great personal 










THE BARBER. 


65 


decapitation is the penalty for plucking 
the whiskers from the position which they 
occupy. 

11. When the practice of shaving off 
the beard was again revived in Europe, 
instrumental music was employed in the 
barber’s shop, to amuse customers waiting 
their turn; but at the present time, news¬ 
papers are furnished for this purpose. In 
taking off the beard, soft water, good soap, 
a brush, and a sharp razor, are the usual 
requisites. The razor should be placed 
nearly flat on the face, and be moved from 
point to heel. Barbers usually have many 
regular customers, each one of whom, in 
general, has a box of soap and a brush ap¬ 
propriated to his individual use. 

12. In ancient times, great attention 
was paid to dressing the hair. The He¬ 
brew women plaited, and afterwards con¬ 
fined it with gold and silver pins: they 
also adorned it with precious stones. The 
Greeks, both male and female, at nearly 
every period of their ancient history, wore 
long hair, which they usually permitted to 
hang gracefully upon the shoulders, back, 
and sometimes upon the breast. 

13. Adult males, among the Romans, 
usually wore their hair short, and dressed 
with great care, especially in later ages, 
when attention to this part of the person 
was carried to such excess, that ointments 
and perfumes were used even in the army. 
The hair was cut for the first time, when 
the boy had attained his seventh year, and 
the second time when he was fourteen 
years old. His locks, at each cutting, 
were commonly dedicated to Apollo or 
Bacchus. 

14. Both men and women, among the 
Greeks and Romans, sometimes permitted 
their hair to grow in honour of some divi¬ 
nity. The Jews, also, when under the 
vow of a Nazarite, were not permitted to 

9 


trim their hair or beards. In grief and 
mourning, the Romans suffered their hair 
and beards to grow: the Greeks, on the 
contrary, when in grief, cut their hair and 
shaved their beards, as likewise did some 
of the barbarous nations of early time. 

15. Artificial hair began to be fashiona¬ 
ble, at an early period; and was used by 
the Greeks, Carthaginians, and Romans. 
In the time of Ovid, blond hair was in 
great favour at Rome; and those ladies 
who did not choose to wear wigs, powdered 
their hair with a kind of gold dust. They 
wore hanging curls all round the head, to 
which they were fastened with circular 
pins of silver. Every wealthy Roman lady 
of fashion kept at least one slave, to frizzle 
and curl the hair. 

16. The time when wigs first came into 
use, cannot be now ascertained. It is cer¬ 
tain, however, that they were worn by 
females a long time before they became 
fashionable among the men. 

17. Wigs, perukes, or periwigs, were 
revived in the seventeenth century. In 
the reign of Louis XIII., or about the year 
1629, they became fashionable at Paris; 
and, as that city was generally imitated by 
the rest of Europe, in things of this nature, 
they soon became common. The wigs 
were very large, as may be seen by ex¬ 
amining ancient portraits, and were covered 
with a profusion of hair-powder. At first, 
it was disreputable for young people to 
wear them, as the loss of the hair, at an 
early age, was attributed to a disease, 
which was, of itself, discreditable. 

18. When wigs were first introduced 
into England, some of the clergy opposed 
them violently, considering their use more 
culpable than wearing long hair, since, as 
they alleged, it was more unnatural. 
Many preachers inveighed against wigs 
in their sermons, and cut their own har 

F2 












THE BARBER. 


06 


shorter, to manifest their abhorrence of the 
reigning mode. 

19. The worldly-wise, however, observed 
that a periwig procured for the wearer a 
degree of respect and deference which 
otherwise might not have been accorded; 
and hence there was a strong tendency to 
the use of this appendage. The judges 
and physicians, especially, understood well 
this influence of the wig, and gave to it 
all the advantages of length and breadth. 
The fashion, at length, was adopted by the 
ecclesiastics themselves, not only in Eng¬ 
land, but in most of the European king¬ 
doms, as well as in the British colonies of 
America. 

20. The fashion, however, except in 
cases of baldness, wherein alone it is ex¬ 
cusable, is now nearly banished from Eu¬ 
rope and America. This desirable change 
was effected, principally, by the example 
of republican America, and by the influence 
of the French Revolution. The law passed 
in England in 1795, imposing a tax of a 
guinea a head per annum on those who 
wore hair-powder, contributed to the same 
result, as well as to diminish the use of 
that article. 

21. The manufacture of wigs and false 
curls, is an important branch of the busi¬ 
ness of the barber. The first process in 
forming a wig, is to produce in the hair 
about to be used for this purpose, a dispo¬ 
sition to curl. This is done by winding it 
on a cylinder of wood or earth, and after¬ 


wards boiling it in water. It is then dried, 
and baked in an oven. Thus prepared, it 
is woven on a strong thread, and is subse¬ 
quently sewn on a caul fitted to the head. 
False curls are made or* the same principle. 

22. Wigs and false curls were not made, 
in ancient times, precisely in the same 
manner; although their appearance, when 
finished, was probably similar. The hair 
was then applied directly to a piece of 
thin leather, by means of some adhesive 
substance, or composition. 

23. Many barbers, especially those who 
have a reputation for making wigs and 
false curls in a fashionable style, keep for 
sale perfumery, as well as a variety of cos¬ 
metics. 

24. From the eleventh to the eighteenth 
century, surgical operations were almost 
exclusively performed by the barbers and 
bath-keepers. As phlebotomy was one of 
the chief sources of profit to the barbers, 
they adopted a sign, emblematical of this 
operation. It consisted of a pole, repre¬ 
senting the staff which the individual held 
in his hand, while the blood was flowing 
from the arm. The white band wound 
spirally about the pole, represented the 
fillet of linen, with which the arm was 
afterwards secured. 

25. It is hardly necessary to remark, 
that the same sign is still employed by the 
barbers, although, with a few exceptions, 
they have ceased to perform the operation 
of which it was significant. 










THE TANNER, AND THE CURRIER. 


THE TANNER. 

1. The art of tanning 1 consists in con¬ 
verting hides and skins into leather, by 
impregnating them with astringent matter. 

2. It is impossible to determine the pe¬ 
riod at which the art of tanning was dis¬ 
covered. It was doubtless known to the 
ancients, and probably to the antediluvians, 
in some degree of perfection; since skins 
were applied as means of clothing the hu¬ 
man body, before the arts of spinning and 
weaving were practised. It is likely, how¬ 
ever, that they were applied to this pur¬ 
pose, for a considerable time, in their 
natural state; and that accident, at length, 
suggested the means of rendering them j 
more applicable, by saturating them with | 
certain mineral or vegetable substances. 

3. Although the art of converting skins j 


into leather was practised in remote ages, 
yet it was not until near the end of the 
eighteenth century, that the true principle 
of the process was understood. Before this 
time, it was supposed that the astringent 
principle of the agents employed was a 
resinous substance, which adhered me¬ 
chanically to the fibres, and thus rendered 
them firm and insoluble. The correct ex¬ 
planation was first given by Deyeux, and 
afterwards more fully developed by M. 
Reguin. These chemists clearly proved, 
that the formation of leather was the result 
of a chemical union between a substance 
called tannin, and the gelatinous part of 
the skin. 

4. The subject, however, was not tho¬ 
roughly understood, and reduced to scien¬ 
tific principles, until the year 1803, when 













































































































































68 


THE TANNER. 


Sir Humphry Davy gave it a careful in¬ 
vestigation, in a series of chemical experi¬ 
ments. These inquiries resulted in the 
conviction, that the method of tanning 
which had been in general use, may, with 
a few alterations, be considered preferable 
to that by which the process is carried on 
with more rapidity. 

5. The skin which envelopes the bodies 
of animals, consists of three layers: that 
on the outside is a thin, white, elastic 
membrane, called the cuticle , or scarf skin; 
that on the inside is a strong membrane, 
denominated the cutis , or true skin; be¬ 
tween these two is a very thin membrane, 
to which anatomists have given the name 
rete mucosum , and in which is situated the 
substance which gives colour to the ani¬ 
mal. The cutis is composed of fibres, 
which run in every direction, and, being 
by far the thickest layer, is the one that is 
converted into leather. 

6. The skins .of large animals, such as 
those of the ox and horse, are denominated 
hides; and those of smaller animals, as of 
the calf, goat, and sheep, are called skins. 
Of the iormer description, is made thick, 
of the latter, thin leather. The process 
of tanning different skins, varies in many 
particulars, according to the nature of the 
leather, and the uses to which it is to be 
applied. 

7. The general process of changing 
thick hides into sole-leather, is as follows: 
They are first soaked in water, to free 
them from dirt and blood; and then, if 
rigid, they are beaten and rubbed, or rolled 
under a large stone, to render them pliable. 
They are next soaked in lime-water, or 
hung up in a warm room, and smoked 
until a slight putrescency takes place. 
The hair, cuticle, rete mucosum, on one 
side, and the fleshy parts on the other, are 


then scraped off, on a beam , with a circu¬ 
lar knife. 

8. Nothing now remains but the cutis, 
or true skin. Several hides, in this state 
of preparation, are put together into a vat, 
for the purpose of impregnating them with 
tannin. This substance is found in as¬ 
tringent vegetables, and is obtained in a 
proper state for application, by infusion in 
water. In that condition, it is called ooze , 
which is first applied in a weak state. 

9. After the ooze of different degrees of 
strength has been renewed several times, 
they are put between layers of bark, and 
suffered to remain several months; fresh 
bark, from time to time, being supplied. 
The whole process generally occupies from 
twelve to sixteen months. When strong 
solutions of tannin are used, the leather is 
formed in a much shorter time; but, in 
that case, it is much more rigid, and liable 
to crack. It is rendered smooth and com¬ 
pact, by beating it with a wooden beetle, 
or by passing it between rollers. 

10. Oak bark, on account of it3 cheap¬ 
ness, and the quantity of tannin which it 
contains, is more extensively employed 
by tanners, than any other vegetaole sub¬ 
stance. In sections of country where this 
kind cannot be conveniently obtained, the 
bark of the hemlock, spruce, and chestnut, 
the leaves of the sumach, and various other 
astringents, are substituted. 

11. The process of tanning calf-skins is 
somewhat different in many of its details. 
They are first put into a solution of lime, 
where they remain during ten or fifteen 
days, and are then scraped on both sides, 
on the beam, with a circular knife, as in 
the former case, and for the same purpose. 
They are then washed in water, and after¬ 
wards immersed in an infusion of hen or 
pigeon’s dung: here they are left for a 








THE CURRIER. 


69 


week or ten days, according to the state 
of the weather and other circumstances; 
during which time, they are frequently 
handled , and scraped on both sides. By 
these means, the lime, oil, and saponaceous 
matter, are discharged, and the skin is 
rendered pliable. 

12. They are next put into a vat con¬ 
taining weak ooze, and afterwards removed 
to several others of regularly increasing 
strength. In the mean time, they are 
taken up and handled every day, that they 
may be equally acted upon by the tanning 
principle. The time occupied in the whole 
process, is from two to six months. The 
light and thin sorts of hides, designed for 
upper leather, harnesses, &c. are treated 
ill a similar manner. 

13. The tanner procures his hides and 
skins from various sources, but chiefly 
from the butcher, and from individuals 
who kill the animals for their own con¬ 
sumption. Great quantities of dry hides 
are also obtained from South America, 
where cattle are killed in great numbers, 
principally for the sake of this valuable 
envelope of their bodies 


THE CURRIER. 

1. It is the business of the currier to 
dress the thinner kinds of leather, which 
he procures from the tanner in an unfinish¬ 
ed state. In most cases, in the United 
States, except in and near large cities, the 
business of tanning and currying are usu¬ 
ally united in the same individual; or, at 
least, the two branches of business are 
carried on together, by the aid of workmen 
skilled in their respective trades. 

2. The mode of dressing the different 
kinds of skins, varies in some respects; 
but, as the general method of operating is 
the same in every sort, a description ap¬ 


plicable in one case will convey a suffi¬ 
ciently accurate idea of the whole. We 
shall, therefore, select the calf-skin, since 
it is more frequently the subject of the 
currier’s skill, than any other. 

3. The skin is first soaked in water, 
until it has become sufficiently soft, and 
then shaved with the currier's knife , on 
the inner side, over the currier's beam: 
it is then placed on a table, somewhat in¬ 
clined from the workman, and scoured on 
both sides with the edge of a narrow, 
smooth stone, set in a handle; and again, 
with an iron sleeker , of a similar shape. 
The skin is next stuffed with a composi¬ 
tion of tallow and tanner’s oil on the flesh 
side, and then hung up to dry. Afterwards 
it is rubbed on the hair side with a board, 
and again scraped on the flesh side with 
the knife. Having been thus prepared 
the skin is blacked on the flesh side with 
lampblack and tanner’s oil, and subse¬ 
quently rubbed with paste, applied with a 
brush. When it has been dried, the whole 
process is finished by rubbing both sides 
with a glass sleeker. 

4. Horse hides are blacked on the hail 
side, or, as the curriers term it, on tnc 
grain , with a solution of copperas water. 
Leather designed for harnesses, for cover¬ 
ing carriages, and for other similar pur¬ 
poses, is also blacked on that side in the 
same manner. 

5. The trade of the currier is divided 
into two or three branches. Some dress 
only calf-skins, and other thick leather de¬ 
signed for shoes, harnesses, and carriages: 
others confine themselves to dressing skins, 
which are to be applied to binding books, 
and to other purposes requiring thin lea¬ 
ther. It may be well to remark here, 
that the dressers of thin leather usually 
tan the skins themselves, using the leaves 
of sumach, instead of bark. 











1. As the shoe is an article of primary 
utility, it was used, more or less, in the ear¬ 
nest ages. Some writers suppose, that the 
Deity, in clothing man with skins, did not 
leave him to go barefooted, but gave him 
shoes of the same material. 

2. The shoes of the ancient Egyptians 
were made of the papyrus. The Chinese, 
as well as the inhabitants of India, and 
some other nations of antiquity, manufac¬ 
tured them from silk, rushes, linen, wood, 
the bark of trees, iron, brass, silver, and 
gold, and sometimes ornamented them with 
precious stones. 

3. The Romans had various coverings 
for their feet; the chief of which were, 
the calceus and the solea. The calceus 
somewhat resembled the shoe we wear at 
present, and was tied upon the instep with 


a latchet, or lace. The solea, or sandal, 
was a thick cork sole, covered above and 
beneath with leather, and neatly stitched 
on the edge: it left the upper part of the 
foot bare, and was fastened to it by means 
of straps, which were crossed over the 
instep, and wound about the ankle. Ro¬ 
man citizens wore the calceus with the 
toga, when they went abroad in the city; 
while the solea was worn at home, and on 
journeys. The solea was also used at en¬ 
tertainments; but it was changed for the 
calceus, when the guests were about to 
surround the table. 

4. The senators wore shoes which came 
up to the middle of the leg, having a 
golden or silver crescent on the top of the 
foot. The shoes of the women were gene¬ 
rally white, sometimes red, scarlet, or par- 



















































THE SHOE AND BOOT MAKER. 


71 


pie, and were adorned with embroidery 
and pearls; but those of the men were 
mostly black: on days of public ceremony, 
however, the magistrates wore red shoes. 

5. Boots were used in very ancient 
times, and were, primarily, worn as a kind 
of armour, with a view of protecting the 
lower extremities in battle. They were, 
at first, made of leather, afterwards of brass 
or iron, and were proof against the thrusts 
and cuts of warlike weapons. The boot 
was called ocrea by the Romans, who, as 
well as the Greeks, used it in the army, 
and in riding on horseback,and sometimes 
in pedestrian journeys. 

6. The fashion of boots and shoes, like 
every other part of dress, has been subject 
to a number of changes, both as regards 
their form and material. In Europe, about 
one thousand years ago, the greatest princes 
wore shoes with wooden soles. In the 
reign of William Rufus, of England, the 
shoes of the great had long, sharp points, 
stuffed with tow, and twisted like a ram’s 
horn. The clergy preached against this 
fashion; but the points continued to in¬ 
crease in length, until the reign of Rich¬ 
ard the Second, when they were tied to 
the knees with chains of silver, or gold. 
In the year 1463, Parliament interposed, 
and prohibited the manufacture or use of 
shoes or boots with pikes exceeding two 
inches in length. 

7. Lasts adapted to each foot, commonly 
called rights and lefts , were not introduced 
into England until about the year 1785; 
nor was cramping, or crimping , the front 
part of boots, practised there for ten years 
after that period. These improvements 
did not become generally known, or, at 
least, were not much used, in the United 
States, for many years after their adoption 
in Great Britain. 

8. Many facts, besides the preceding, 


might be adduced, to prove that the art of 
making shoes and boots, although uninter¬ 
ruptedly practised from the earliest ages, 
has received many important improvements 
within the last fifty years. 

9. In Europe and America, boots and 
shoes are commonly made of leather: in 
shoes for females, however, it is not un¬ 
usual to use prunello, which is a kind of 
twilled, worsted cloth. In all cases, thick 
leather is used for the soles. 

10. The business of making boots and 
shoes is carried on very systematically, in 
large establishments. The materials are 
cut out and fitted by the foreman, or by 
the person who carries on the business; 
whilst the pieces are stitched together, and 
the work finished, by workmen who sit 
upon the bench. 

11. As a matter of convenience, the trade 
have fixed upon certain sizes, which are 
designated by numbers; and, corresponding 
to these, the lasts are formed by the last- 
maker : but, to be still more exact, indi¬ 
viduals sometimes procure lasts corres¬ 
ponding to their feet, on which they cause 
their boots and shoes to be made. 

12. The following is a description of the 
process of making a leather shoe: after 
the materials have been cut out according 
to the measure, or size, and the parts of 
the uppers have been stitched together, 
the sole-leather is hammered on the lap- 
stone , tacked to the last, and trimmed with 
a knife: the upper leather is next stretch¬ 
ed on the last with a pair of pincers, fasten¬ 
ed to its proper place with tacks, and then 
sewed to the bottom of the sole with a 
waxed thread: a narrow strip of leather, 
called a welt, is also fastened to the sole 
by similar means, and to this is stitched 
another sole: a heel being added, the shoe 
is finished by trimming and polishing it 
with appropriate instruments. 








72 


THE SHOE AND BOOT MAKER. 


13. The edges of fine leather shoes and 
boots, are trimmed with thin strips of the 
like material: whilst those of prunello, and 
other thin shoes for ladies, are bound with 
narrow tape. The binding is applied by 
females with thread, by means of a com¬ 
mon needle. 

14. Shoe-thread is commonly spun from 
flax: that from hemp is much stronger, 
and was formerly preferred ; but it is now 
used only for very strong work. The great¬ 
er part of the shoe-thread used in the Uni¬ 
ted States, is spun by machinery, at Leeds, 
in England, from Russian flax. The wax 
employed by shoemakers, was formerly 
composed of tar and rosin ; but it is now 
most usually made of pitch. 

15. The shoemaker, in sewing together 
different parts of his work, uses threads of 
various sizes, which are composed of seve¬ 
ral small threads of different lengths: a 
hog’s bristle is fastened to each end of it, 
which enables the workman to pass it with 
facility, through the holes made with the 
awl. 

16. An expeditious way of fastening the 
soles of boots and shoes to the upper lea¬ 
thers, is found in the use of wooden pegs, 
or brass nails. The old method, however, 
is generally preferred, on several accounts; 
but chiefly, because the work is more 
durable, and because it can be more easily 
repaired. 

17. Journeymen working at this trade 


most usually confine their labours to par¬ 
ticular kinds of work, as few can follow 
every branch with advantage. Some make 
shoes and boots for men; others confine 
their labours to those designed for ladies: 
but, by their aid, the master-shoemaker 
can, and usually does, supply every kind 
at his store. 

18. It is no uncommon thing in the 
country, for the farmers to purchase lea¬ 
ther, and employ the shoemaker to make 
it up; and this is done, in most cases, on 
their own premises. The shoemaker em¬ 
ployed in this way, removes from house to 
house, changing his location whenever he 
has completely served a whole family in 
his vocation. In such cases, he is said, by 
the trade, to be whipping the cat. The 
set of tools, with which he operates, ia 
called his kit. 

19. The shoemaker usually buys his 
leather from the tanner and the currier; 
and procures his tools, tacks, and various 
other articles of a similar nature, at the 
finding stores. In some cases, the shoe¬ 
maker, with little or no capital, gets his 
materials from the leather-cutter , who 
makes it a business to supply them ready 
cut to the proper size and shape. There 
are, however, but few leather-cutters in 
our country; but, in England, this branch 
of trade is one of considerable importance, 
and is frequently connected with that of 
the leather-dresser. 





r 



THE SADDLER AND HARNESS-MAKER, 
AND THE TRUNK-MAKER. 


THE SADDLER AND HARNESS-MAKER. 

1. The invention of the saddle has been 
attributed to the Selians, a people of an¬ 
cient Franconia. Under this impression, 
it has been supposed that the Latins gave 
it the name of sella. The period at which 
it was first used, cannot be ascertained: it 
is ceria.n, however, that the horse had 
been rendered subservient to man, several 
centuries before this convenient article was 
thought of. 

2. At first, the rider sat upon the bare 
back of the animal, and guided him with 
a switch, but afterward with a strap put 
round the nose. In the course of time, 
the rider came to use upon the back of the 
horse the skins of beasts, in order to render 

10 


his seat more easy. The Greeks, and 
many other refined nations of antiquity, 
sometimes used superb trappings, com¬ 
posed of cloth, leather, and skins dressed 
with the hair on; and, in addition to the 
gold, silver, and precious stones, with 
which these were ornamented, the horses 
were often otherwise decked with bells, 
collars, and devices of various kinds. 

3. The Romans, in the days of the Re¬ 
public, deemed it more manly to ride on 
the bare back of the animal, than on cover¬ 
ings : at a later period, they used a kind 
of square pannel, without stirrups; and 
about the year 340 of the Christian era, 
they began to ride on saddles. It appears 
that those first employed were very heavy, 

G 




































































































































































































































































74 


THE TRUNK-MAKER. 


as the Emperor Theodosius, in the same 
century, forbade the use of any which 
weighed over sixty pounds. The use of 
saddles was established in England by 
Henry the Seventh, who enjoined on his 
nobility the practice of riding upon them. 

4. The frame of a saddle is called a 
tree: it is not made by the saddlers, but 
by persons who confine their attention to 
this branch of business. The trees are 
constructed of wood, with a small quantity 
of iron, and covered with canvas. 

5. In making a common saddle, the 
workman proceeds thus: He first extends 
two strips of straining web from the pom¬ 
mel to the hinder part of the tree, and 
fastens them with tacks: the tree is then 
covered on the upper side with two thick¬ 
nesses of linen cloth, between which a 
quantity of wool is afterwards interposed : 
a covering of thin leather, usually made 
of hog’s-skin, is next tacked on, and the 
flaps added: under the whole are placed 
the pads and saddle-cloth; the former of 
which is made of thin cotton or linen cloth, 
and thin leather, stuffed with hair. The 
addition of four straps, two girths, two 
stirrup-leathers, and as many stirrups, com¬ 
pletes the whole operation. 

6. The roughness, or the little indenta¬ 
tions in the flaps, are produced by passing 
the leather between rollers, in contact with 
a rough surface, or by beating it with a 
mallet, on the face of which has been 
fastened a piece of the skin from a species 
of shark, commonly called the dog-fish. 

7. Saddles are often covered with buck¬ 
skin, curiously stitched into figures, and 
having the spaces between the seams 
stuffed with wool: this is particularly the 
case in side-saddles. The form of saddles, 
and the quality of the materials, together 
with the workmanship, are considerably 
varied, to suit the purposes to which they 


are to be applied, and to accommodate the 
fancy of customers. 

8. The process of making bridles and 
harness for horses, is extremely simple. 
The leather is first cut out with a knife of 
some description, but usually with one of a 
crescent-like form, or with a blade set in a 
gauge, and then stitched together with the 
kind of thread used by shoemakers. The 
awl employed in punching the holes is 
straight; and needles are most commonly 
used, instead of the bristles which point the 
shoemaker’s threads. The mode of manu¬ 
facturing saddle-bags, portmanteaus, and 
valises, is too obvious to need description. 


THE TRUNK-MAKER. 

1. The manufacture of trunks is equally 
simple with that of harness- In com¬ 
mon cases, it consists chiefly in lining the 
inside of a box with paper, or some kind 
of cloth, and covering the outside with a 
skin, or with leather, which is fastened to 
the wood by means of tacks. Narrow 
strips of leather are fastened upon hair 
trunks with brass nails, by way of orna¬ 
ment, as well as to confine the work. 

2. Instead of a wooden box, frames of 
iron are used for the best kinds of trunks: 
in such cases, thick sole-leather is applied 
to every side, and the whole is covered 
with well-dressed calf-skin. In the manu¬ 
facture of trunks of this description, but 
few tacks and brass nails are used, the lea¬ 
ther being fastened to its place with seams 
of waxed thread. 

3. How long trunk-making has been a 
separate trade, cannot be exactly ascer¬ 
tained. The trunk-makers in France were 
incorporated into a company, in 1596. In 
the United States, this branch of business 
is very commonly united with that of the 
saddler and harness-maker 















THE SOAP-BOILER, AND THE CANDLE-MAKER. 


THE SOAP-BOILER. r 

1. The business of the soap-boiler con-! 
gists in manufacturing soap, by the combi¬ 
nation of certain oily and alkaline sub¬ 
stances. 

2. The earliest notice of this useful 
article occurs in the works of Pliny, in 
which it is stated that soap was composed 
of tallow and ashes; that the mode of 
combining them was discovered by the 
Gauls; but that the German soap was the 
best 

3. For many ages before the invention 
of soap, saponaceous plants, and several 
kinds of earth, together with animal mat¬ 
ters and the ley from ashes, were employ¬ 
ed for the purpose of cleansing the skin, 
and articles of clothing. The idea of com¬ 


bining some of these substances, with the 
! view of forming soap, probably originated 
in accident. 

4. The vegetable oils and animal fats, 
capable of saponification, are very numer¬ 
ous ; but those most commonly employed 
in the manufacture of the soaps of com¬ 
merce, are olive-oil, whale-oil, tallow, lard, 
palm-oil, and rosin; and the alkalies with 
which these are most frequently combined, 
are soda, the ley of ashes,* or its residuum 
potash. 

5. Soda is sometimes called the mineral 
alkali , because it is found, in some parts of 
the world, in the earth. It was known to 
the ancients, at a very early period, under 
the denomination of natron: it received 
this appellation from the lakes of Natron, 



































































































76 


THE SOAP-BOILER. 


v— . ■ — — ---- 

m Egypt, from the waters of which it was 
produced by evaporation, during the sum¬ 
mer season. 

6. The soda of commerce is now chiefly 
obtained from the salsola , a genus of plants 
which grows on the sea-shore. In Spain, 
the plant from which soda is obtained is 
denominated barilla; hence, the substance 
produced from it by incineration has re¬ 
ceived the same appellation. The ashes 
of a sea-weed which grows on the coasts 
of Scotland and Ireland, is called kelp. In 
Europe, barilla and kelp are more exten¬ 
sively employed in the manufacture of soap 
than any other alkaline substances; but, in 
this country, where wood is so much used 
for fuel, common ashes are generally pre¬ 
ferred. 

7. The process of making the ordinary 
brown or yellow soap, from wood-ashes, 
is conducted in the following manner: the 
alkali is first obtained in a state of solution 
in water, by leeching the ashes as described 
m page 20, and then poured, in a weak 
state, into a copper or iron cauldron, having 
a large wooden tub carefully affixed to the 
top of it 

8. When the ley has been properly 

heated, the tallow, either in a tried state, 
or the suet, is gradually added. More ley, 
of greater concentration, is poured in; and 
the ingredients are moderately boiled for 
several hours, while a person, as represent¬ 
ed in the preceding cut aids their chemical 
union by agitating them with a wooden 
spatula. • 

9. After a quantity of rosin has been 
added, and properly incorporated with the 
other materials, the fire is withdrawn until 
the next morning, when it is again raised: 
then, with the view of forming the paste 
into hard soap, a quantity of muriate of 
soda (common salt) is added: the muriatic 
acid of this substance, uniting with the 


potash, forms with it muriate of potash, 
which dissolves in the water, while the 
soda combines with the tallow and rosin. 
Hard soap, therefore, contains no potash; 
although this alkali is generally employed 
during the early part of the process of 
making it. 

10. After the addition of the muriate of 
soda, the boiling and stirring are continued 
two or three hours, when the fire is with¬ 
drawn, and the contents of the cauldron 
are suffered to be at rest. When the soap 
has completely separated from the watery 
part, and extraneous matters, it is laded 
into another cauldron, again diluted with 
strong ley, and heated. The paste having 
been brought to a proper consistence, more 
common salt is added as before, and for the 
same purposes. 

11. The chemical part of the process 
having been thus completed, the soap is 
laded into single wooden boxes, or into 
one or more composed of several distinct 
frames, which can be removed separately 
from the soap, after it has become «olid 
enough to stand without such support 
The soap is cut into bars, of nearly a uni¬ 
form size, by means of a small brass wire. 

12. Manufacturers of soap have con¬ 
trived various methods of adulterating this 
article, or of adding ingredients which 
increase its weight, without adding to its 
value. The most common means employ¬ 
ed for this purpose is water, which may 
be added, in some cases, in considerable 
quantities, without greatly diminishing the 
consistency of the soap. 

13. This fraud may be detected by let¬ 
ting the soap lie for some time exposed to 
the atmosphere: the water will thus be 
evaporated, and its quantity can be known 
by weighing the soap, after its loss of the 
superfluous liquid. To prevent evapora¬ 
tion while the soap remains on hand, it is 









THE CANDLE-MAKER. 


77 


said that some dealers keep it in saturated 
solutions of common salt. Another method 
of adulteration is found in the use of pul¬ 
verized lime, gypsum, or pipe-clay: these 
substances, however, can be easily detected 
by means of a solution in alcohol, which 
precipitates them. 

14. The process of manufacturing soft 
soap, differs but little in its details from 
.hat described in the preceding paragraphs. 
The chief difference consists in omitting 
the use of salt: soft soap, therefore, is com¬ 
posed of a greater proportion of water, and 
more alkali than is necessary to saturate 
the unctuous matters. Soft soap is made 
by almost every family in the country, from 
ashes, grease, and oily matters, reserved 
for the purpose. 

15. The celebrated Marseilles white 
soap, is composed of 


Soda,. 6. 

Olive-oil,. 60. 

Water. 34. 

Castile soap, of 

Soda,. 9. 

Olive-oil.76.5 


Water, with a little colouring ) ^ 

matter,.$ 

Fine toilet-soaps are made with oil of 
almonds, nut-oil, palm-oil, suet, or butter: 
they are either potash or soda soaps, as 
they may be prepared in a solid or pasty 
state. 

16. In the manufacture of white soap, 
the tallow is more carefully purified, and 
no rosin is used: in other particulars, the 
process differs but little from that employ¬ 
ed in the production of the common kind. 
Two tons of tallow should yield three tons 
of white soap. In making the same quan¬ 
tity of common brown or yellow soap, 
twelve hundred weight less is required, on 
account of the substitution of that amount 
of yellow rosin. 


17. The mottled appearance of some 
soaps is caused by dispersing the ley 
through it, towards the close of the opera¬ 
tion ; or by adding a quantity of sulphate 
of iron, indigo, or the oxide of manganese. 
Castile soap, now manufactured in the 
greatest perfection at Marseilles, in France, 
receives its beautifully marbled appearance 
from the sulphate of iron. 


THE CANDLE-MAKER. 

1. The subject of the candle-maker’s 
labours may be defined to be a wick, co¬ 
vered with tallow, wax, or spermaceti, in 
a cylindrical form, which serves, when 
lighted, for the illumination of objects in 
the absence of the sun. The business of 
candle-making is divided into two branch¬ 
es: the one is confined to the manufac¬ 
turing of tallow candles, and the other to 
making those composed of wax or sperma¬ 
ceti. 

2. The process of making candles from 
tallow, as conducted by the tallow-chan¬ 
dler, needs only a brief description, since it 
differs but little from the method pursued 
by families in the country, with which 
most persons are familiar: the difference 
is chiefly in the employment of a few con¬ 
veniences, by which the candles are more 
rapidly multiplied. 

3. The first part of the process consists 
in preparing a wick, to serve as a founda¬ 
tion. The coarse and slightly twisted yam 
used for this purpose, is spun in the cotton- 
factories ; and, being wound into balls, is, 
in that form, sold to the tallow-chandlers, 
as well as to individuals who make candles 
for their own consumption. 

4. A sufficient number of threads is 
combined, to form a wick of a proper size; 
and, as they are wound from the balls, they 

are measured off, and cut to the proper 

G 2 















78 


THE CANDLE-MAKER. 


length, by a simple contrivance, which 
consists of a narrow board, a wooden pin, 
and the blade of a razor: the pin and razor 
are placed perpendicularly to the board, 
at a distance determined by the length of 
the proposed wick. The wicks are next 
put upon cylindrical rods, about three feet 
long; and a great number of these are 
arranged on a long frame. 

5. To obtain the tallow in a proper state 
for use, it is separated from the membranous 
part of the suet, by boiling the latter in an 
iron or copper kettle, and then subjecting 
the cracklings to the action of a press. 
The substance that remains, after the tal¬ 
low has been expressed, is called greaves , 
which are sometimes applied to fattening 
ducks for market: this is especially the 
case in the city of London. 

6. The tried tallow is prepared for ap- 
Dlication to the wicks, by heating it to a 
oroper temperature: it is then poured into 
a suitable receptacle, where it is kept in 
order either by a moderate fire underneath, 
or by the occasional addition of hot tallow. 

7. The broaches , as the sticks with their 
wicks are called, are taken up, several at 
a time, either between the fingers or by 
means of a simple instrument denominated 
a ralie , and dipped into the tallow: they 
are then returned to the frame, and suffered 
to cool, while successive broaches are treat¬ 
ed in the same way. The dipping is re¬ 
peated until the candles have been thick¬ 
ened to the proper size. 

8. In the preceding plate is represented 
a workman in the act of dipping several 
broaches of candles, suspended on a rake, 
which he holds in his hands. The mode 
of making dipped candles just described, 
is more generally practised than any other, 
and in this manner five or six hundred 
pounds can be made by one hand, in a 
single day. In some establishments, how¬ 


ever, a more complicated apparatus is 
used, by which every part of the process 
is greatly expedited. 

9. Mould candles are made very differ¬ 
ently. The moulds consist of a frame of 
wood, in which are arranged several hol¬ 
low cylinders, generally made of pewter: 
at the lower extremity of each cylinder, is 
a small hole, for the passage of the wick, 
which is introduced by means of a hook 
on the end of a wire. The cotton is fast¬ 
ened at the other end, and placed in a per¬ 
pendicular situation in the centre of the 
shafts, by means of a wire, which passes 
through the loops of the wicks. The 
melted tallow, having been poured on the 
top of the wooden frame, descends into 
each mould; and after the candles have 
become sufficiently cold, they are extract¬ 
ed from the cylinders with a bodkin, which 
is inserted into the loop of the wick. One 
person can thus mould two or three hun¬ 
dred pounds in a day. 

10. Candles are also made of bees-wax 
and spermaceti; but the mode of their 
manufacture differs in no particular from 
that of common mould candles. The wicks 
for wax-candles are usually made of a 
peculiar kind of cotton, which grows in 
Asiatic Turkey. 

11. Before the wax is applied to this 
purpose, the colouring matter is discharged. 
This is effected by bleaching the wax, in 
the following manner: it is first divided 
into flakes, or thin lamina?, by pouring it, 
in a melted state, through a colander upon 
a cylindrical wheel, which, at the same 
time, is kept revolving, while partly im¬ 
mersed in cold water: the wax, having 
been removed from the water, is placed 
upon a table or floor covered with some 
kind of cloth: here it is occasionally sprin¬ 
kled with water, until the bleaching has 
been completed. The process occupies 








THE CANDLE-MAKER. 


70 


several weeks, or even months, according 
to the state of the weather, that being best 
which is most favourable to a rapid evapo¬ 
ration. 

12. Spermaceti is a substance separated 
from sperm-oil, which is obtained from a 
species of whale, called physeter macroce- 
phalus , or spermaceti cachalot. This oil 
is obtained both from the head and body of 
the animal, but that procured from the 
former contains twice the quantity of 
spermaceti. 

13. To separate the spermaceti from the 
oil yielded by the body, it is first heated, 
then put into casks, and suffered to stand 
two or three weeks, in order to granulate: 
the oily part is now filtrated through strain¬ 
ers; and the remainder, which is called 
foots , is again heated, and put into casks: 
after standing several weeks, these are put 
into bags, and submitted to the action of a 
powerful press. The spermaceti, thus ob¬ 
tained, is melted and moulded into cakes. 
The oil thus separated from the spermaceti 
is called spring or fall strained, because it is 
filtered and expressed only during those 
seasons of the year. 

14. The oil from the head of the whale 
is treated like that from the body, in almost 
every particular: the difference consists, 
principally, in omitting the use of the 
strainer, and in the employment of stronger 
bags and a more powerful press. The oil 
obtained from the head-matter is called 
pressed , since it is separated by the action 
of the press only: it is also denominated 
winter-strained , because the operation is 
performed in the cold weather. 

15. The spermaceti, having been melted 
and moulded into cakes, is reserved until 
the succeeding summer, when it is cut 
into thin shavings, by means of a large 
shave, similar to the spoke-shave of the 
wheelwrights, and again pressed as before. 


The oil of this last pressing is called taut 
pressed , and is the least valuable kind, 
since a slight degree of cold causes it to 
become thick. The spermaceti obtained 
from the common sperm-oil, and that from 
the head-matter, are melted together, and 
purified by means of potash-ley. 

16. The sperm-oil, thus freed from the 
spermaceti, is extensively applied in lamps 
as a means of illumination; and, for many 
purposes, it is far more convenient than 
tallow. In the country, lard is frequently 
employed instead of oil, especially by the 
German population. In some European 
and Asiatic countries, vegetable oils supply 
the place of animal fats, in this application. 

17. The origin of the art of making 
candles, is not known. It is evident, how¬ 
ever, that the business is comparatively 
modern, since the Greeks and Romans, as 
well as other nations of antiquity, employ¬ 
ed torches of pine and fir, and lamps sup¬ 
plied with oil, in the production of artificial 
light. The words in the scriptures, trans¬ 
lated candle , imply nothing more nor less 
than a light produced by some kind of oil 
consumed in a lamp. 

18. The lamps in ancient times were 
suspended by a chain or cord from the 
ceiling, or supported on stands and movea¬ 
ble tables, which were called by the Ro¬ 
mans lampadaria , or candelabra. Many 
specimens of this utensil are preserved in 
several museums of Europe, and some 
have lately been found in the ruins of Her¬ 
culaneum. 

19. The Chinese make their candles 
from the tallow obtained from the seeds 
and capsules of the tallow-tree. This tree, 
which is produced in great abundance in 
China, is said to be cultivated in various 
parts of South Carolina and Georgia. In 
appearance, it resembles the Lombardy 
poplar. 











r 





n 


i 


THE COMB-MAKER, AND THE BRUSH-MAKER. 


THE COMB-MAKER. 

1. The comb is a well-known instru¬ 
ment, employed in cleansing, dressing, and 
confining the hair. It is made of various 
materials, but most commonly of tortoise¬ 
shell, the horns and hoofs of cattle, ivory, 
bone, and several kinds of hard wood. 

2. It is impossible to determine the pe¬ 
riod of the world at which it was intro¬ 
duced, since history and tradition, the 
sources from which we obtain information 
of this nature, are silent with regard to 
its origin. It is evident, however, that 
the comb is an instrument of primary ne¬ 
cessity ; and hence it must have been in¬ 
vented in the earliest ages. This opinion 
is confirmed by the fact, that the comb 
has been frequently found in use amongst 
savages, when first visited by civilized men. 


3. Combs employed in fixing the hair, 
are made of tortoise-shell, or of the horns 
of cattle. The genuine tortoise-shell is 
taken from the testudo imbricata, or hawk's- 
bill turtle; but a kind of shell, inferior in 
quality, is obtained from the testudo caretta , 
or loggerhead turtle. These turtles inha¬ 
bit the seas of warm and temperate cli¬ 
mates ; but they are especially numerous 
in the West Indian seas, where shell is a 
valuable article of commerce: that from 
St. Domingo is especially esteemed, for its 
brilliancy of shade and colour. 

4. The shell of the hawk’s-bill turtle 
was extensively employed for ornamental 
purposes by the refined nations of antiquity, 
although we have no account of its appli¬ 
cation to the manufacture of combs. The 
Greeks and Romans decorated with it the 





























































THE COMB-MAKER. 


81 


doors and pillars of their houses, as well 
as their beds and other furniture. The 
Egyptians dealt largely with the Romans, 
in this elegant article. 

5. The general length of the hawk’s-bill 
turtle is about three feet from the bill to 
the end of the shell; but it has been 
known to measure five feet, and to weigh 
five or six hundred pounds: in the Indian 
ocean, especially, specimens of prodigious 
magnitude are said to have occurred. 

6. The shell employed in the arts grows 
upon the back and feet of the animal: that 
on the back, consists of thirteen laminae, 
or plates, which lap over each other, like 
tiles on the roof of a house. The plates 
vary in thickness from one-eighth to one- 
fourth of an inch, according to the age and 
size of the turtle. The quantity of mer¬ 
chantable shell obtained from a single sub¬ 
ject of the usual size, is about eight pounds, 
which, at the usual price, is worth sixty 
or seventy dollars. 

7. The process of making combs from 
the horns of cattle, is not difficult to be 
understood. The tips and huts are first 
cut off with a saw, and the remaining por¬ 
tion is also divided longitudinally on one 
side with the same instrument. The horns 
are then soaked for the space of several 
days, and afterwards boiled in oil, to ren¬ 
der them pliable: they are next spread out 
and pressed between hot iron plates. This 
operation clarifies the horn, and produces 
a plate of proper thickness. 

8. After the plates thus produced have 
Deen cut to the sizes of the proposed 
combs, and when these have been shaved 
to a suitable thickness with instruments 
adapted to the purpose, the teeth are cut 
either with a twinning saw , as represented 
in the preceding cut, or with a twinning 
machine. 

9. In the former case, the plate is faston- 

11 


ed with a wooden clamp , by the part which 
is designed to be left for the back of the 
comb; and when twins, or two combs, are 
to be formed from one piece, the other end 
is bent down, so as to render the upper sur¬ 
face considerably convex: to this surface 
the twinning saw is applied by the hand 
of the workman, who makes a number of 
incisions; which are completed both ways 
with two different kinds of saws, and the 
end of each tooth is cut from the back of 
the opposite comb with an instrument 
called a plugging awl. 

10. The twinning machine was invent¬ 
ed about fifteen years ago, by a Mr. Tho 
mas, of Philadelphia; but it has been suc¬ 
cessively improved by several individuals 
since that time. It is, altogether, an inge¬ 
nious and useful contrivance. The cutting 
part consists of two chisels, which are 
made to act on the plate alternately, and 
in a perpendicular direction, each chisel 
cutting one side of two teeth, and severing 
one from the opposite back, at every stroke. 
It is impossible, however, to form a clear 
conception of the manner in which the 
machine operates, except by actual inspec¬ 
tion. It performs the work with great 
rapidity, since from one to two hundred 
dozens of combs can be cut in twelve 
hours; whereas, not one-fourth of that 
number can be twinned , in the,old method, 
during the same time, 

11. After the teeth have been rounded 
and in other respects brought to the proper 
form with suitable instruments, the combs 
are polished by rubbing them first with the 
dust of a peculiar kind of-brick, then by 
applying them to a moving cylinder cover¬ 
ed with buff leather, charged with rotten- 
stone, ashes, or brick-dust; and finally, by 
rubbing them with the hand, charged with 
rotten-stone and vinqgax. 

12. The qonffia aje next coloured, or 







82 


HE BRUSH-MAKER. 


stained; and, as the tortoise-shell is by far 
the best and most expensive material for 
this kind of comb, the great object of the 
manufacturer is to produce colours as 
nearly resembling those of the real shell 
as practicable. This is done in considera¬ 
ble perfection, in the following manner: 

13. The combs are first dipped in aqua¬ 
fortis, and then covered with a paste made 
of lime, pearl-ash, and red lead. To pro¬ 
duce the requisite variety of shades, both 
taste and judgment are necessary in apply¬ 
ing the composition, and in determining 
the time which it should remain upon the 
combs. To give the combs a still stronger 
resemblance to shell, they are also im¬ 
mersed for fifteen or twenty minutes in a 
lye of nicaragua. 

14. The combs having been covered 
with oil, they are next heated upon iron 
plates, and brought to the desired shape by 
bending them upon wooden blocks with a 
woollen list. The whole process is finished 
by rubbing off the oil with a silk handker¬ 
chief. 

15. The general process of making shell 
combs differs but little from that which has 
been just described, varying only in a few 
particulars, in compliance with the pecu¬ 
liar nature of the material. 

16. On account of the great value of 
shell, the workmen are careful to make 
the most of every portion of it: accord¬ 
ingly, when a piece falls short of the de¬ 
sired size, it is enlarged by welding to it 
another of smaller dimensions. The union 
is effected, by lapping the two pieces upon 
each other, and then pressing them toge¬ 
ther between two plates of hot iron: the 
heat of the iron is prevented from injuring 
the shell, by the interposition of a wet 
linen cloth, and by immersing the whole 
in hot water. In a similar manner, broken 
combs are often mended; and by the same 


method, two pieces of horn can also bt: 
joined together. 

17. Both horn and shell combs are often 
stamped with figures, and otherwise orna¬ 
mented with carved work. In the latter 
case, the ornaments are produced, by re¬ 
moving a part of the material with a saw 
and graver. The saw employed is not more 
than the twelfth of an inch in width, and 
being fastened to a frame, is moved up and 
down, with great rapidity, by means of the 
foot, while the part of the comb to be cut 
away is applied to the teeth. The ope¬ 
rator is guided in the work by a pattern, 
which has been struck on paper from an 
engraved plate. 

18. Combs for dressing and cleansing 
the hair, are made of horn, shell, bone, 
ivory, and wood; but it is unnecessary to 
be particular in describing the manner in 
which every kind of comb is manufactured : 
we will only add, the teeth of fine ivory 
and bone combs are cut with a buzz, or 
circular saw, which, fastened to a man¬ 
drel, is moved in a lathe. 


THE BRUSH-MAKER. 

1. There are few manufactured articles 
in more general use, than brushes. This 
has arisen from their great utility, and 
the low prices at which they can be pur¬ 
chased. The productions of the brush- 
maker’s labour are denominated variously, 
according to the purposes to which they 
are to be applied. 

2. The operations connected with this 
business are very simple, as there is scarce¬ 
ly a tool employed which is not familiar to 
every other class of mechanics. The brush- 
maker, however, does not manufacture 
every part of the brush. He procures his 
wooden stocks and handles from various 
sources, but chiefly from the turner; and 













THE BRUSH-MAKER. 


83 


bone handles, from the tooth-brush handle- 
maker. 

3. The first part of the process which 
may be considered as belonging particu¬ 
larly to the brush-maker, consists in boring 
the holes for the reception of the bristles: 
this is done with a bit of a proper size, 
which is kept in motion with a lathe, while 
the wood is brought against it with both 
hands. To enable the operator to make 
the holes in the right place, and in the 
proper direction, a pattern is applied to the 
hither side of the stock. 

4. The greater part of the bristles used 
by the brush-makers in the United States, 
are imported from Russia and Germany: 
large quantities, however, are obtained 
from Pennsylvania, and some parts of the 
Western States. American bristles are 
worth from thirty to fifty cents per pound, 
a price sufficiently high, one would sup¬ 
pose, to induce the farmers to preserve 
them, when they butcher their swine: 
were this generally done, a tolerable sup¬ 
ply of the shorter kinds of bristles might 
be obtained in our own country. 

5. When the bristles come into the 
hands of the brush-maker, the long and 
short, and frequently those of different 
colours, are mixed together. These are 
first assorted, according to colour, and those 
of a whitish hue are afterwards washed with 
potash-ley and soap, to free them from ani¬ 
mal fat, and then whitened by bleaching 
them with the fumes of brimstone. 

6. The bristles are next combed with a 
row of steel teeth, for the purpose of placing 
them in a parallel direction, and with a 
view of depriving them of the short hair 
which may be intermixed. The workman, 
immediately after combing a handful, as¬ 
sorts it into separate parcels of different 
’«engths. This is very readily done, by 


pulling out the longest bristles from the 
top, until those which remain in the hand 
have been reduced to a certain length, 
which is determined by a gauge marked 
with numbers. At each pulling, the hand¬ 
ful is reduced in height near half an inch. 

7. The stocks and the bristles having 
been thus prepared, they are next fastened 
together: this is effected, either with wire 
or a composition of tar and rosin. The wire 
is used in all cases in which the fibre is 
doubled; but when the bristles are required 
in their full length, as in sweeping-brushes, 
the adhesive substance is employed. 

8. It is superfluous to enter into detail, 
to show the manner in which the wire and 
composition are applied, in fixing the bris¬ 
tles, as any person, with an ordinary de¬ 
gree of observation, can readily compre¬ 
hend the whole, by examining the different 
kinds of brushes which are met with in 
every well-regulated household. The bris¬ 
tles, after having been fixed to the stock 
or handle, are trimmed with the shears or 
knife, according as they are required to be 
equal or unequal in length. 

9. The brifsh is next handed over to the 
finisher , who applies to the back of the 
stock a thin veneer of wood, which secures 
the wire against the oxidizing influence 
of the atmosphere, and gives to the brush 
a finished appearance. The stock, together 
with the veneer, is then brought to the 
desired shape with suitable instruments, 
polished with sand-paper, and covered will 
varnish. 

10. Those brushes which the manufac¬ 
turer designs to be ornamented, are sent 
in great quantities to the ornamenter, who 
applies to them various figures, in gold or 
Dutch leaf, japan or bronze, and sometimes 
prints, which have been struck on paper 
from engraved plates. 









1. A house in which travellers are enter¬ 
tained is denominated a tavern, inn, coffee¬ 
house, hotel, or house of public entertain¬ 
ment ; and an individual who keeps a house 
of this description, is called an inn-keeper 
or tavern-keeper. Of these establishments 
there are various grades,—from the log 
cabin with a single room, to the splendid 
and commodious edifice with more than a 
hundred chambers. 

2. This business is one of great public 
utility; since, by this means, travellers 
obtain necessary refreshments and a tem¬ 
porary home, with very little trouble on 
their part; and that, in most cases, for a 
reasonable compensation. This is espe¬ 
cially the case in the United States, where 
the public houses, taking them together, 


are said to be superior to those of any 
other country. 

3. Travellers, in the early ages of the 
world, either carried with them the means 
of sustenance and protection from the wea¬ 
ther, or relied upon the hospitality of stran¬ 
gers; but, as the intercourse between dif¬ 
ferent places, for the purposes of trade, 
increased, houses of public entertainment 
were established, which at first were chiefly 
kept by women. 

4. The people of antiquity, in every age 
and nation, whether barbarous or civilized, 
were, however, remarkable for their hos¬ 
pitality. We find this virtue enjoined in 
the Mosaic writings, and scriptures gene¬ 
rally, in the poems of Homer, as well aa 
in other distinguished writings, which have 























































THE TAVERN-KEEPER. 


85 


descended to our times. The heathen na¬ 
tions were rendered more observant of the 
rites of hospitality, by the belief, that their 
fabulous gods sometimes appeared on earth 
in human shape; and the Jews and ancient 
Christians, by the circumstance that Abra¬ 
ham entertained angels unawares. 

5. On account of the occasional acts of 
violence committed both by the guests and 
master of the house, it became necessary 
to take some precautions for their mutual 
safety. When, therefore, a stranger ap¬ 
plied for lodgings, it was customary among 
the Greeks for both to swear by Jupiter 
that they would do each other no harm. 
This ceremony took place while each party 
stood with his foot placed on his own side 
of the threshold; and a violation of this 
oath by either party, excited against the 
offender the greatest horror. 

6. The Greeks and Romans, m common 
with the people of many other nations, 
were in the habit of making arrangements 
with persons at a distance from their 
homes, for a mutual accommodation, when 
either party might be in the vicinity of the 
other. In these agreements, the contract¬ 
ing parties included their posterity, and de¬ 
livered to each other tokens, which might 
be afterwards exhibited in proof of ancient 
ties of hospitality between the families. 
They swore fidelity to each other by the 
name of Jupiter, who was surnamed the 
hospitable, because he was supposed to be 
the protector of strangers, and the avenger 
of their wrongs. 

7. This relation was considered a very 
intimate one, especially by the Romans; 
and, in their language, it was called hos- 
pilium , or jus hospitii: hence, the guest 
and entertainer were both called hostes, 
a word from which host is derived, which 
is employed to designate both the landlord 
and the guest. The Roman nobility used to 


build, for the reception of strangers, apart¬ 
ments called hospitalia , on the right and 
left of the main building of their residence. 

8. During the middle ages, also, hospi¬ 
tality was very commonly practised; and 
the virtue was not considered one of those 
which might be observed or neglected, at 
pleasure: the practice of it was even en¬ 
joined by statute, in many countries, as 
a positive duty, which could not be neg¬ 
lected with impunity. In some cases, the 
moveable goods of the inhospitable person 
were confiscated, and his house burned. If 
an individual had not the means of enter¬ 
taining his guest, he was permitted to 
steal, in order to obtain the requisite sup- 

p ] y- 

$7 The nobles of Europe, during this 
period, were generally distinguished for 
their cordial entertainment of strangers, 
and their immediate adherents. Their 
extraordinary liberality arose, in part, from 
the general customs of the age, and partly 
from a desire to attach to their interests as 
great a number of retainers as possible, 
with a view to maintain or increase their 
political importance Strangers were also 
entertained at the monasteries, which were 
numerous in almost every kingdom of Eu¬ 
rope. Several of these institutions were 
established in solitary places, with the ex¬ 
press purpose of relieving travellers in 
distress. 

10. It is evident, that the arrangements 
for mutual accommodation, and the h t- 
pitable character of the ancients, were 
unfavourable to the business of keeping 
tavern: but the free intercourse between 
different nations, which arose from the 
Crusades, and the revival of commerce, 
contributed greatly to the habit of regu¬ 
larly entertaining strangers for a compen¬ 
sation, and led to the general establishment 
of inns. 






86 


rHE TAVERN-KEEPER. 


11. These inns, however, were not, at 
first, well supported, for the reason, that 
travellers had been so long accustomed to 
seek for lodgings in private houses. In 
Scotland, inns were established by law, 
A. D. 1424; and, to compel travellers to 
resort to them, they were forbidden, under 
a penalty of forty shillings, to use private 
accommodations, where these public houses 
were to be found. 

12. How far legislative enactments have 
been employed for the establishment of 
inns in other countries, we have not been 
able to learn, as the authorities to which 
we have referred for information on this 
point are silent with regard to it: we 
know, however, that laws have been made 
in almost every part of Europe, as well as 
in the United States, with the view of com¬ 
pelling the landlord to preserve proper 
order, and to accommodate h s customers 
at reasonable charges. 

13. In the United States, and in all 
other commercial countries, this business 
has become an employment of great im¬ 
portance, both to the individuals who have 
engaged in it, and to the general commu¬ 
nity. Within the present century, the 
amount of travelling has greatly increased, 
and the excellence of the public houses 
has advanced in the same ratio. Some of 
these establishments, in the cities and large 
towns, are among the most extensive and 
splendid edifices of the country; and, in 
every place through which there is much 
travelling, they are usually equal, or supe¬ 
rior, to the private dwellings of the neigh¬ 
bourhood. 

14. The business of keeping tavern, 
however, is not always confined to the pro¬ 
per object of entertaining travellers, or 
persons at some distance from home. A 


public house is frequently the resort of the 
people who live in the immediate vicinity, 
and is often the means of doing much in¬ 
jury, by increasing dissipation. 

15. In all cases in which ardent spirits 
are proposed to be sold, a license must be 
obtained from the public authorities, for 
which must be paid the sum stipulated by 
law; but any person is permitted to lodge 
travellers, and to supply them with every 
necessary means of cheer and comfort for 
a compensation, without the formality of a 
legal permission: yet, a license to sell 
liquors is called a tavern-license, because 
most tavern-keepers regard the profits on 
the sale of ardent spirits as one of their 
chief objects. 

16. A public house in which no strong 
drink is sold, is called a temperance tavern 
and such establishments are becoming com¬ 
mon : but they are not, at present, so well 
supported as those in which the popular 
appetite is more thoroughly complied with. 
The time, however, may not be far distant, 
when the public sentiment will undergo 
such a salutary change, that the tavern- 
keepers generally will find it their best 
policy to relinquish the sale of this poison¬ 
ous article. 

17. As travellers often apply to the bar 
for “something to drink,” merely to remu¬ 
nerate the landlord for the use of his fire, 
or some little attention, the friends of tem¬ 
perance would essentially promote their 
cause, by encouraging the practice of pay¬ 
ing for a glass of water, or some trifle of 
this kind: this would increase the number 
of temperance taverns, and, perhaps, be 
the means of preventing many generous 
people from forming those dissipated habits, 
which are so often attended with ruinous 
results. 











1. Hunting and fishing are usually con¬ 
sidered the primary occupations of man; 
not because they were the first employ¬ 
ments in wlncn he engaged, but because 
they are the chief means of human sus¬ 
tenance among savage nations. 

2. The great and rapid increase of the 
inferior animals, and, probably, the dimi- ! 
mshed fertility of the soil after the deluge, 
caused many branches of the family of 
Noah to forsake the arts of civilized life, 
especially after the dispersion caused by 
the confusion of tongues. 

3. Many of these families, or tribes, 
continued in this barbarous state for seve¬ 
ral ages, or until their increase of numbers, 
and the diminished quantity of wild game, 
tendered a supply of food from the objects 
of the chase extremely precarious. Neces¬ 


sity then compelled them to resort to the 
domestication of certain animals, and to 
the cultivation of the soil. But the practice 
of hunting wild animals is not confined 
to the savage state: it is an amusement 
prompted by a propensity inherent in hu¬ 
man nature. 

4. The earliest historical notice of this 
sport is found in the tenth chapter of Gene¬ 
sis, in which Nimrod is styled, “ a mighty 
hunter before the Lord.” So great was his 
prowess in this absorbing pursuit, that he 
was proverbially celebrated on this account 
even in the time of Moses. Nimrod is the 
first king of whom we read in history; 
and it is by no means improbable, that his 
skill and intrepidity in subduing the wild 
beasts of the forest, contributed largely 
towards elevating him to the regal station. 




























































88 


THE HUNTER. 


5. Although the spoils of the chase are 
of little consequence to men, after they 
have united in regular communities, in 
which the arts of civilized life are culti¬ 
vated; yet the propensity to hunt wild 
animals continues, and displays itself more 
or less among all classes of men. 

6. The reader of English history will 
recollect that William the Conqueror, who 
began his reign in the year 10G6, sig¬ 
nalized his passion for this amusement, by 
laying waste, and converting into one vast 
hunting-ground,the entire county of Hamp¬ 
shire, containing, at that time, no less than 
twenty-two populous parishes. Severe laws 
were also enacted, prohibiting the destruc¬ 
tion of certain kinds of game, except by a 
few persons having specified qualifications. 
With some modifications, these laws are 
still in force in Great Britain. 

7. In other countries of Europe, also, 
large tracts have been appropriated by the j 
kings and nobles to the same object. This 
tyrannical monopoly is attempted to be jus¬ 
tified by the unreasonable pretension, that 
all wild animals belong, of right, to the 
monarch of the country where they roam. 

8. The quadrupeds most hunted in Eu¬ 
rope, are the stag, the hare, the fox, the 
wolf, and the wild boar. These beasts are 
pursued either on account of their intrinsic 
value, or for sport, or to rid the country of 
their depredations: in some instances, all 
three of these objects may be united. The 
method of capturing or killing the animals 
is various, according to the character and 
objects of the persons engaged in it 

9. In Asia, the wolf is sometimes hunted 
with the eagle; but, in Europe, the strong¬ 
est greyhounds are employed to run him 
down: this task, however, is one of ex¬ 
treme difficulty, as he can easily run twen¬ 
ty miles upon a stretch, and is besides very 
cunning in the means of eluding his pur¬ 


suers. Chasing the fox on horseback, with 
a pack of hounds, is considered an ani¬ 
mating and manly sport, both in Europe 
and North America. 

10. The most prominent victim of tht 
hunter, in Africa, is the lion. He is usu 
ally sought in small parties on horseback 
with dogs; but sometimes, when one of 
these formidable animals has been disco¬ 
vered, the people of the neighbourhood 
assemble and encircle him in a ring, three 
or four miles in circumference: the circle 
is gradually contracted, until the hunters 
have approached sufficiently near to the 
beast, when they dispatch him, usually 
with a musket-ball. 

11. In the southern parts of Asia, tiger¬ 
hunting is a favourite amusement. Seated 
upon an elephant, trained especially for 
the purpose, the hunter is in comparative 
safety, while he pursues and fires upon the 
tiger until his destruction is effected. 

12. The white bear and the grisly bear 
are the most formidable animals in North 
America ; yet they are industriously hunt¬ 
ed, both by Indians and white men, on ac¬ 
count of the value of their flesh and skins. 
Bisons, or, as they are erroneously called, 
buffaloes, are found in great numbers in 
the vast prairies which occur between the 
Mississippi and the Rocky Mountains. 
They are commonly met with in droves, 
which sometimes amount to several thou¬ 
sands 

13. When the Indian hunters propose to 
destroy these animals, they ride into the 
midst of a herd, and dispatch them with 
repeated wounds; or, they get a drove be¬ 
tween themselves and a precipice, and, by 
shouting and yelling, cause the animals to 
crowd each other off upon the rocks below. 
In this manner, great numbers are disabled 
and taken at once. The hunters, at other 
ffro'w, drive the bisons into inclosures, and 











THE HUNTER. 


89 


then shoot them down at their leisure. 
The hide of this animal is dressed with 
the hair adhering to it; and skins in this 
state are used by the savages for beds, and 
oy the white people, in wagons, sleighs, 
and stages. 

14. North America, and the northern 
parts of Asia, have been, and, in some 
parts, still are, well stocked with fur-clad 
animals; and these are the principal ob¬ 
jects of pursuit, with those who make 
hunting their regular business. Some of 
these animals were common in every part 
of North America, when this portion of 
the western continent was first visited by 
Europeans; and a trade in peltries, more 
or less extensive, has been carried on with 
the natives, ever since the first settlement 
of the country. 

15. For the purpose of conducting this 
trade with advantage, a company was 
formed in England, in 1670, by Prince Ru¬ 
pert and others, to whom a charter was 
granted, securing to them the exclusive 
privilege of trading with the Indians about 
Hudson's Bay. Another company was 
formed in 1783-4, called the North-West 
Fur Company. Between these companies, 
there soon arose dissensions and hostilities, 
and many injuries were mutually inflicted 
by the adherents of the parties. Both as¬ 
sociations, however, were at length united, 
under the title of the Hudson’s Bay Fur 
Company. The Indian trade, on the great 
lakes, and the Upper Mississippi, has long 
been in possession of the North American 
Fur Company, most of the directors of 
which reside in the city of New York. 

16. The companies just mentioned sup¬ 
ply the Indians with coarse blue, red, and 
fine scarlet cloths, coarse cottons, blankets, 
ribands, beads, kettles, fire-arms, hatchets, 
knives, ammunition, and other articles 


adapted to the wants of the hunters; re¬ 
ceiving, in return, the skins of the musk¬ 
rat, beaver, otter, martin, bear, deer, lynx, 
fox, &c. 

17. The intercourse with the Indians is 
managed by agents, called clerks, who 
receive from the company a salary, rang¬ 
ing from three to eight hundred dollars 
per annum. The merchandise is conveyed 
to the place of trade, in the autumn, by 
the aid of Canadian boatmen and half- 
Indians. The most considerable portion 
of the goods are sold to the Indians on a 
credit, with the understanding that they 
are to make payment in the following 
spring; but, as many neglect this duty, a 
high price is affixed to the articles thus 
intrusted to savage honesty. The clerk 
furnishes the debtor with a trap having his 
own name stamped upon it, to show that 
the hunter has pledged every thing which 
may be caught in it. 

18. Each clerk is supplied with four 
labourers, and an interpreter; the latter 
attends to the store in the absence of the 
clerk, or watches the debtors in the Indian 
camp, lest they again sell the produce of 
their winter’s labours. The peltries, when 
obtained, are sent to the general agent of 
the company. 

19. The fur trade is also prosecuted, to 
some extent, by a class of men in Missouri, 
who proceed from the city of St. Louis, in 
bodies comprising from fifty to two hun¬ 
dred individuals. After having ascended 
the Missouri river, or some of its branches, 
and, perhaps, after having passed the Rocky 
Mountains, they separate, and pursue the 
different animals on their own individual 
account, either alone or in small parties. 
The Indians regard these men as intruders 
on their territories; and, when a favour¬ 
able opportunity is presented, they fre- 


H 2 







90 


THE HUNTER.- 


quently surprise and murder the wander¬ 
ing hunters, and retain possession of their 
property. 

20. In consequence of the unremitted 
warfare which has, for a long time, been 
carried on against the wild animals of 
North America, their number has been 
greatly diminished; and, in many parts, 
almost every species of the larger quadru¬ 
peds and the fur-clad animals has been 
exterminated. Even on the Mississippi, 
and the great lakes, the latter description 
of animals has been so much reduced in 
number, that the trade in peltries, in those 
parts, has become of little value. Another 
half century will, probably, nearly termi¬ 
nate the trade, in every part of North 
America. 

21. The fur trade was prosecuted with 
considerable success, during the* latter part 
of the last century, principally by the Eng¬ 
lish, on the north-west coast of America, 
and the adjacent islands. The peltries 
obtained by these enterprising traders, 
were carried directly to China. The trade 
was interrupted for a while by the Span¬ 
iards, who laid claim to those regions, and 
seized the British traders engaged there, 
together with the property in their pos¬ 
session. This affair, however, was after¬ 
wards amicably adjusted by the Spanish 
and English governments; and the whole 
trade, from California north, and to China, 
was opened to the latter. 

22. The fur trade, in those parts, is now 
chiefly in the hands of the Russian Com¬ 
pany in America, which has a capital of a 
million of dollars engaged in the business. 
Most of the persons owning the stock are 
merchants, residing at Irkutsk, a town of 


Siberia, which is the centre of the fur trade 
of that country. The skins obtained in 
Russian America are chiefly procured from 
the sea-otter, and several species of seal, 
together with those from foxes, of a blue, 
black, and gray colour, which are brought 
from the interior. Parties of Russian 
hunters have already passed the Rocky 
Mountains, and interfered with the trade 
of the Hudson’s Bay Company. The fur 
trade of Siberia is chiefly carried on with 
China. 

23. The chief objects of the hunters in 
Siberia, are the black fox, the sable, the 
ermine, the squirrel, the beaver, and the 
lynx. In the region near the Frozen 
Ocean, are also caught blue and white 
foxes. Siberia is the place of banishment 
for the Russian empire; and the exiles 
were formerly required to pay to the go¬ 
vernment an annual tribute of a certain 
number of sable-skins. The conquered 
tribes in Siberia, were also compelled to 
pay their taxes in the skins of the fox and 
sable; but now, those of less value, or 
money, are frequently substituted. 

24. Although the skins of beasts were 
the first means employed to clothe the 
human body, yet it does not appear thaw 
the Greeks and Romans, and the other 
refined nations of antiquity, ever made use 
of furs for this purpose. The custom of 
wearing them, originated in those regions 
where the fur-clad animals were numerous, 
and where the severity of the climate 
required this species of clothing. The use 
of furs was introduced into the southern 
parts of Europe by the Goths, Vandals, 
Huns, and other barbarous nations, which 
overran the Roman empire. 












\. Although permission was given by 
the Deity, immediately after the flood, to 
employ for human sustenance “ every mo¬ 
ving thing that liveth,” yet it is not proba¬ 
ble, that fishes were used as food, to any 
considerable extent, for several centuries 
afterwards. It is stated by Plutarch, that 
the Syrians and Greeks, in very ancient 
times, abstained from fish. Menelaus, one 
of Homer’s heroes, complains, on a certain 
occasion, that his companions had been re¬ 
duced by hunger to the necessity of eating 
fish ; and there is no mention in Homer, 
that the Grecians, at any time, used this 
food at the siege of Troy, although, for the 
ten years during which that contest was 
carried on, their camp was on the sea-shore. 

2. Moses, the Jewish lawgiver, is very 
explicit in designating the land animals 


which might be used by the Israelites as 
food; but he imposes no restrictions, with 
regard to the animals which inhabit the 
waters. We learn, however, from the 
twelfth chapter of Numbers, that the chil¬ 
dren of Israel, while journeying to the 
land of Canaan, “remembered the fish 
which they did eat,” in Egypt. 

3. This is the earliest notice on record, 
of the actual use of that class of animals 
for food; although it is probable, that they 
had been applied to this purpose, in Egypt, 
six or seven hundred years before that 
period, or soon after the settlement of this 
country by the descendants of Ham. 

4. For a long time before the advent of 
Our Saviour, fishing had been a regular 
business, even in Judea; and from the 
class of men who followed this occupation, 

















































92 


THE FISHERMAN. 


he chose several of his apostles. At the 
time just mentioned, fish had become a 
common article of diet, in all parts of the 
world subject to the Roman power, and 
probably in almost all other countries. 

5. The methods of catching fish, pur¬ 
sued in ancient times, were similar to 
those of the present day, for then, as now, 
they were caught with a hook, with a 
spear, and with a seine or net, according 
to the character of the animal, and the 
nature of the fishing station. But the 
great improvements in navigation, made 
since the twelfth century, have given mo¬ 
dern fishermen the command of the Atlan¬ 
tic and Pacific Oceans, and, consequently, 
a knowledge of many species of fish which 
were formerly unknown. 

6. According to Linnreus, the great na¬ 
turalist, about four hundred species of fish 
have come to our knowledge; and he esti¬ 
mates that those which remain unknown 
are probably still more numerous. Not¬ 
withstanding this great variety, the chief 
attention of fishermen is confined to a few 
kinds, which are the most easily caught, 
and which are the most valuable when 
taken. 

7. Every place which contains many in¬ 
habitants, and which is located in the vici¬ 
nity of waters well stored with fish, is 
supplied with these animals by men who 
make fishing a business: still, these fish¬ 
eries may be considered local in their be¬ 
nefits, and perhaps do not require particu¬ 
lar notice in this article. We will only 
remark, therefore, that, in large cities, fresh 
fish are sold either in a fish-market, or are 
hawked about the streets. The wives of 
the fishermen are very often employed in 
selling the fish caught by their husbands. 
The fisheries which are of the greatest 
consequence, in general commerce, are 


those which relate to herring, mackerel, 
salmon, seal, and whale. 

8. Herring Fishery .—There are seve¬ 
ral species of herring; but, of these, four 
kinds only are of much importance, viz. 
the common herring, the shad, the hard 
head, and the alewife; of which, the first 
is the most valuable, being by far the most 
numerous, and being, also, better adapted 
than the others for preservation. 

9. The winter residence of the common 
herring is within the arctic circle, whence 
it emigrates, in the spring, to more south¬ 
ern portions of the globe, for the purpose 
of depositing its spawn. The first body 
of these migratory animals, appears on the 
coasts both of Europe and America, in 
April, or about the first of May; but these 
are only the precursors of the grand shoals, 
which arrive in a few weeks afterwards. 

10. Their first approach is indicated by 
the great number of birds of prey, which 
follow them in their course: but when the 
main body appears, the number is so great 
that they alter the appearance of the ocean 
itself. In this last and principal migration, 
the shoals are five or six miles in length, 
and three or four in breadth, and before 
each of these columns the water is driven 
in a kind of ripple: sometimes, the fish 
sink together ten or fifteen minutes, and 
then rise again to the surface, when they 
reflect, in clear weather, the rays of the 
sun, in a variety of splendid colours. 

11. These fish proceed as far south as 
France, on the coasts of Europe, and as 
far as Georgia, in America, supplying every 
bay, creek, and river, which opens into the 
Atlantic. Having deposited their spawn, 
generally in the inland waters, they return 
to their head-quarters id the arctic ocean, 
and recruit their emaciated bodies for 
another migration in the following spring 








THE FISHERMAN. 


93 


12. In a few weeks, the young ones are 
hatched by the genial heat of the sun; and, 
as they are not found in southern waters in 
the winter, it is evident that they proceed 
northward in the fall, to their paternal 
haunts under the ice, and thus repair the 
vast destruction of their race, which had 
been caused by men, fowl, and fish, in the 
previous season. 

13. These fish are caught in nearly 
every river, from Maine to Georgia, which 
has a free communication with the Atlan¬ 
tic; but the most extensive fisheries are 
on the Hudson and Delaware rivers, and on 
those which flow into the Chesapeake bay. 

14. The instrument employed in catch¬ 
ing these fish is called a seine, which is a 
species of net, sometimes in length several 
hundred fathoms, and of a width suiting 
the depth of the water in which it is to be 
used. Both edges of the net-work are 
fastened each to a rope; and, to cause the 
seine to spread laterally in the water, pieces 
of lead are fastened to one side, and pieces 
of cork to the other. 

15. In spreading the seine in the water, 
one end is retained on land by a number 
of persons, while the rest of it is strung 
along from a boat, which is rowed in the 
direction from the shore. The seine having 
been thus extended, the further end is 
brought round, in a sweeping manner, to 
the shore; and the fish that may be in¬ 
cluded are taken into the boats with a 
scoop-net, or are hauled out upon the shore. 
In this way, two or three hundred thou¬ 
sands are sometimes taken at a single 
haul. This fish dies immediately after 
having been taken from the water: hence 
the common expression, “As dead as a 
herring.” 

16. The herrings are sold, as soon as 
caught, to people who come to the fish¬ 
ing stations to procure them; or, in case 


an immediate sale cannot be effected, they 
are cured with salt, and afterwards smoked, 
or continued in brine. In the Southern 
States, the herring is generally thought to 
be superior to any other fish, for the purpose 
of salting down; although the shad, and 
some others, are preferred while fresh. 

17. The importance of this fishery is 
superior to that of any other; since the 
benefits resulting from it are more general¬ 
ly diffused. The ancients, however, do not 
appear to have had any knowledge of this 
valuable fish. It was first brought into no¬ 
tice by the Dutch, who are said to have 
commenced the herring fishery on the 
coasts of Scotland, in the year 1164, and 
to have retained almost exclusive posses¬ 
sion of it, until the beginning of the present 
century. 

18. The shad is a species of herring, 
which inhabits the sea near the mouths 
of rivers, ascending them in the spring, to 
deposit its spawn. It is caught in all the 
rivers terminating on our Atlantic coasts, 
as well as in some of the rivers of the 
North of Europe. This fish is captured 
in the same manner, and often at the same 
time, with the common herring. It is 
highly esteemed in a fresh state; although 
it is not so good when salted, as the her¬ 
ring and some other kinds of fish. 

19. Mackerel Fishery .—The common 
mackerel is a migratory fish, like the her¬ 
ring, and ranks next to that tribe of fishes 
in regard to numbers, and perhaps in gene¬ 
ral utility. Its place of retirement in the 
winter, is not positively known; but it is 
supposed by some, to be far north of the 
arctic circle; and by others, to be in some 
part of the Atlantic farther south. Shoals 
of this fish appear on the coasts both of 
Europe and America, in the summer sea¬ 
son. Of this fish there are twenty-two 
species. 






94 


THE FISHERMAN. 


r 

20. The mode of catching the mackerel, 
is either with a net or with hooks and 
lines. The latter method succeeds best, 
when the boat or vessel is driven forward 
by a gentle breeze; and, in this case, a bit 
of red cloth, or a painted feather, is usu¬ 
ally employed as a bait. Several hooks 
are fastened to a single line, and the fish 
bite so readily, that the fishermen occa¬ 
sionally take one on each hook at a 
haul. The mackerel are cured in the 
usual manner, and packed in barrels, to be 
6old to dealers. 

21. This fish was well known to the 
ancients, as one of its places of resort, in 
the summer, was the Mediterranean sea. 
It was highly esteemed by the Romans, for 
the reason, that it was the best fish for 
making their sarum, a kind of pickle or 
sauce much esteemed by this luxurious 
people. 

22. Salmon Fishery .—The salmon is a 
celebrated fish, belonging to the trout ge¬ 
nus. It inhabits the seas on the European 
coasts, from Spitzbergen to Western 
France; and, on the western shore of the 
Atlantic, it is found from Greenland to the 
Hudson river. It also abounds on both 
coasts of the North Pacific Ocean. The 
length of full-grown salmon, is from four 
to six feet; and their weight, from ten to 
fifteen pounds. 

23. As soon as the ice has left the rivers, 
the salmon begin to ascend them, for the 
Durpose of depositing their spawn. It has 
been ascertained, that these fish retain a 
remarkable attachment to the river which 
gave them birth; and, having once depo¬ 
sited their spawn, they ever afterwards 
choose the same spot for their annual 
deposits. This latter fact has been estab¬ 
lished by a curious Frenchman, who, fasten¬ 
ing a ring to the posterior fin of several 
salmon, and then setting them at liberty, 


found that some of them made their ap- 
pearance at the same place three succes¬ 
sive seasons, bearing with them this dis¬ 
tinguishing mark. 

24. In ascending the rivers, these fish 
usually proceed together in great numbers, 
mostly swimming in the middle of the 
stream; and, being very timid, a sudden 
noise, or even a floating piece of timber, 
will sometimes turn them from their course, 
and send them back to the sea; but having 
advanced a while, they assume a deter¬ 
mined resolution, overcoming rapids and 
leaping over falls twelve or fifteen feet 
in perpendicular height. 

25. Salmon are caught chiefly with 
seines, and sometimes seven or eight hun¬ 
dred are captured at a single haul; but, 
from fifty to one hundred is the most usual 
number, even in a favourable season. 
They are also taken in weirs, which are 
inclosures so constructed that they admit 
the ingress, but not the regress, of the fish. 

26. The salmon fisheries are numerous 
in Great Britain and Ireland, as well as in 
most of the northern countries of Europe. 
In the United States, the most valuable 
fisheries of this kind are on the rivers in 
Maine, whence the towns and cities farther 
south are principally supplied with these 
fish, in a fresh condition. They are pre¬ 
served in ice, while on their way to mar¬ 
ket. In the cured state, the salmon is 
highly esteemed, although it is not easily 
digested. 

27. Cod Fishery .—There are several 
species of cod-fish, or gadus; but the most 
important and interesting of the class, 
is the common cod. These fish are found 
in great abundance on the south and west 
coasts of Iceland, on the coasts of Norway, 
off the Orkney and Western Isles, and in 
the Baltic sea. Farther south, they gra¬ 
dually diminish in numbers; and entirely 









THE FISHERMAN. 


95 


disappear, some distance from the Straits 
of Gibraltar. 

28. But the great rendezvous of cod-fish 
is on the coasts of Labrador, the banks of 
Newfoundland, Cape Breton, and Nova 
Scotia. They are invited to these situa¬ 
tions by the abundance of small fish, worms, 
and other marine animals of the crusta- 
ceous and testaceous kinds, on which they 
feed. The fishermen resort, in the great¬ 
est numbers, to the banks, which stretch 
along the eastern coasts of Newfoundland 
about four hundred and fifty miles. The 
water on these banks varies from twenty 
to fifty fathoms in depth. 

29. By negociations with Great Britain, 
the French, Dutch, Spanish, and Ameri¬ 
cans, have acquired the right to catch and 
cure fish, both on the Grand Banks and 
several other places on the coasts of the 
English possessions in North America. The 
number of vessels employed on the seve¬ 
ral fishing stations, during each successive 
season, amounts to six or seven thousand, 
each measuring from forty to one hundred 
and twenty tons, and carrying eight or ten 
men. 

30. The fishing on the Grand Banks 
commences in April, and continues until 
about the first of August. Here, the fish 
are caught exclusively with hooks, which 
are usually baited with a small fish called 
the capelin, as well as with herring, clams, 
and the gills of the cod itself: but this fish 
is not very particular in its choice of bait, 
biting greedily at almost any kind which 
may be presented. An expert fisherman 
will frequently catch from one to three 
hundred cod in a single day. 

31. As soon as the fish have been caught, 
their heads are cut off, and their entrails 
taken out: they are then salted away in 
bulk, in the hold; and, after having lain 
three or four days to drain, they are taken 


to another part of the vessel, and again 
salted in the same manner. The fisher¬ 
men from New-England, however, give 
them but one salting while on the fishing 
station; but, as soon as a cargo has been 
obtained, it is carried home, where con¬ 
veniences have been prepared for curing 
the fish, to greater advantage. By pursu¬ 
ing this plan, two or three trips are made 
during the season. Some of the fish are 
injured before they are taken from the ves¬ 
sel; and these form an inferior quality, 
called Jamaica, fish , because such are 
generally sold in that island, for the use 
of the slaves. 

32. The fish which are caught on the 
coasts of Labrador, at the entrance of Hud¬ 
son’s Bay, in the Straits of Belleisle, and 
on fishing stations of similar advantages, 
are cured on the shore. They are first 
slightly salted, and then dried in the sun, 
either on the rocks, or on scaffolds erected 
for the purpose. In these coast fisheries, 
the operations commence in June, and con¬ 
tinue until some time in August. The cod 
are caught in large seines, as well as with 
hook and line. 

33. Seal Fishery .—There are several 
species of the seal; but the kind which is 
most numerous, and most important in a 
commercial view, is the common seal. It 
is found on the sea-coasts throughout the 
world, but in the greatest numbers in very 
cold climates, where it furnishes the rude 
inhabitants with nearly all their necessa¬ 
ries and luxuries. 

34. The animal is valuable to the civili¬ 
zed world, on account of its skin and oil. 
The oil is pure, and is adapted to all the 
purposes to which that from the whale is 
applied. In the spring of the year, the 
seals are very fat; and, at that time, even 
small ones will yield four or five gallons of 
oil. The leather manufactured from the 






96 


THE FISHERMAN. 


skins, is employed in trunk-making, sad¬ 
dlery, and in making boots and shoes. 

35. Since the whale fishery has declined 
in productiveness in the northern seas, 
sealing has arisen in importance; and ac¬ 
cordingly, vessels are now frequently fitted 
out for this purpose, both in Europe and 
America; whereas, a few years since, it 
was regarded only as a part of the objects 
of a whaling voyage. 

•$6. Our countrymen of New-England 
have particularly distinguished themselves 
in this branch of business; and the part of 
the globe which they have found to be the 
most favourable to their objects, has been 
the islands in the Antarctic ocean. A 
sealing voyage to that quarter often occu¬ 
pies three years, during which time the 
hunters are exposed to great hardships, 
being often left in small detachments on 
desolate islands, for the purpose of pursu¬ 
ing the animals to greater advantage. 

37. - The best time for sealing in the Arc¬ 
tic ocean, is in March and April, when the 
seals are often met with in droves of seve¬ 
ral thousands on the ice, which is either 
fixed, or floating in large pieces. When 
the sealers meet with one of these droves, 
they attack the animals with clubs, and 
stun them by a single blow on the nose. 
After all that can be reached, have been 
disabled in this way, the skin and blubber 
are taken off together. 

38. This operation is called flenching, 
and is sometimes a horrible business; since 
some of the seals, being merely stunned, 
occasionally recover, and, in their denuded 
state, often make battle, and even leap into 
the water, and swim off. The skins, with 
the blubber attached to them, are packed 
away in the hold; and, in case the vessel 
is to return home soon, they are suffered 
to remain there, until she arrive in port: 
but, when this is not expected, the skins, 


as soon as convenient, are separated from 
the blubber, and the latter is put into casks. 
There are other methods of capturing the 
seal; but it is, perhaps, not necessary to 
enter into further details. 

39. Whale Fishery .—There are five 
species of the whale, of which the Balcena 
Physails, or razor-back, is the largest 
When full grown, it is supposed to be 
about one hundred feet in length, and 
thirty or thirty-five feet in circumference. 
It is so powerful an animal, that it is ex¬ 
tremely difficult to capture it; and, when 
captured, it yields but little oil and whale¬ 
bone. The species to which whalers direct 
their attention, is denominated the Myste - 
cetus, or the right whale. 

40. The mystecetus is found, in the 
greatest numbers, in the Greenland seas, 
about the island of Spitzbergen, in Davis* 
Straits, in Hudson’s and Baffin’s Bays, and 
in the northern parts of the Pacific Ocean. 
It is also found in the Antarctic Ocean, 
and along the coasts of Africa and South 
America, and occasionally on the coasts of 
the United States. 

41. Each vessel engaged in this fishery, 
is generally fitted out by several individu¬ 
als, who receive, of the return cargo of oil 
and whale-bone, in proportion to the amount 
which they have contributed to the com¬ 
mon stock, after the men have received 
their proportion of it. Should the voyage 
prove altogether unsuccessful, which sel¬ 
dom happens, the owners lose the amount 
of the outfit, and the captain and hands 
their time. 

4*2. The whalers commence operations 
in the northern latitudes, in the month of 
May ; but the whales are most plentiful in 
June, when they are met with between 
the latitudes 75° and 80°, in almost every 
variety of situation; sometimes in the open 
seas, at others in the loose ice, or at the 








THE FISHERMAN. 


9 


edges of the Jie.as and Jloes , which are 
near the main, impervious body of ice. 

43. On the fishing station, the boats are 
kept always ready for instant service, being 
suspended from davits or cranes by the 
sides of the ship, and being furnished with 
a lance and a harpoon, to the latter of 
which is attached about one hundred and 
twenty fathoms of strong but flexible rope. 
When the weather and situation are fa¬ 
vourable, the crow's-nest, which is a station 
at the mast-head, is occupied by some per¬ 
son with a telescope. 

44. The moment a whale is discovered, 
notice is given to the watch below, who 
instantly man one or two boats, and row 
with swiftness to the place. Sometimes, a 
boat is kept manned and afloat near the 
ship, that no time may be lost in making 
ready; or, two or three are sent out on the 
look-out , having every thing ready for the 
attack. 

45. The whale being very timid and 
cautious, the men endeavour to approach 
him unperceived, and strike him with the 
narpoon, before he is aware of their pre¬ 
sence. Sometimes, however, he perceives 
their approach, and dives into the water, 
to avoid them; but, being compelled to 
come again to the surface to breathe, or, 
as it is termed, to blow, they make another 
effort to harpoon him. In this way, the 
whalers often pursue him for a considera¬ 
ble time, and frequently without final suc¬ 
cess. The animal, when unmolested, re¬ 
mains about two minutes on the surface, 
during which time he blows eight or nine 
times, and then descends for five or ten 
minutes, and often, while feeding, for fif¬ 
teen or twenty. 

46. When the whale has been struck, 
ne generally dives towards the bottom of 
ftie sea, either perpendicularly or obliquely, 
where he remains about thirty minutes, 

13 


and sometimes nearly an hour. Tne har¬ 
poon has, near its point, two barbs or with¬ 
ers, which cause it to remain fast in the 
integuments under the skin; and the rope 
attached to it, is coiled in the bow of the 
boat, in such a way that it runs out without 
interruption. When more line is wanted, 
it is made known to the other boats by the 
elevation of an oar. Should the rope prove 
too short for the great descent of the whale, 
it becomes necessary to sever it from the 
boat, lest the latter be drawn under water: 
for this emergency, the harpooner stands 
ready with a knife. 

47. When the whale reappears, the 
assisting boats make for the place with 
their greatest speed, and, if possible, each 
harpooner plunges his weapon into the 
back of the creature. On convenient oc¬ 
casions, he is also plied with lances, which 
are thrust into his vitals. At length, over 
come with wounds, and exhausted by the 
loss ol blood, his approaching dissolution is 
indicated by a discharge of blood from his 
blow-holes, and sometimes by a convulsive 
struggle, in which his tail, raised, whirled, 
and jerked in the air, resounds to the dis¬ 
tance of several miles. The whale having 
been thus conquered, and deprived of life, 
the captors express their joy with loud 
huzzas, and communicate the information 
to the ship by striking their flag. 

48. A position near a large field of solia 
ice is very advantageous, because a whaie 
diving under it is obliged to return again 
to blow; and this circumstance gives op 
portunity to make upon him several attacks. 
Close fields of drift ice present great diffi¬ 
culties, since the boats cannot always pass 
through them, with sufficient celerity: in 
that case, the men sometimes travel over 
the ice, leaping from one piece to another, 
and carrying with them lances and har 
poons, with which they pierce the animal 












98 


THE FISHERMAN 


as often as possible. If they succeed in ; 
thus killing him, they drag him back under i 
the ice, with the fast line. 

49. The whale, having been towed to ' 
the ship, and secured alongside, is raised • 
a little by means of powerful blocks, or I 
tackle. The harpooners, with spurs fast- i 
ened to the bottom of their feet, to prevent j 
them from slipping, descend upon the huge j 
body, and, with spades and knives adapted 
to this particular purpose, cut the blubber 
into oblong pieces, which are peeled off, 
and hoisted upon deck with the speck- : 
tackle. These long strips are then cut into i| 
chunks, which are immediately packed j 
away in the hold. After the animal has 
been thus successfully flenched, and the j 
whale-bone taken out, the carcase is dis- j 
missed to the sharks, bears, and birds of ii 
orey. 

50. The blubber is somewhat similar, 
in consistence, to the fat which surrounds 
the body of the hog, although not quite 
so solid. In young whales, its colour is 
yellowish white; and, in old ones, yellow 
or red- Its thickness varies in different 
parts, and in different individuals, from 
eight to twenty inches. The weight of 
a whale sixty feet in length, is about seven- j 
ty tons, of which the blubber weighs about 
thirty tons. 

51. The whale-bone is situated in the 
mouth. About three hundred lamina', or [ 
blades, grow parallel to each other on either 
6ide of the upper jaw, being about half an 
inch thick, and ten or twelve inches wide, 
where they are united by the gum. As 
the whale grows old, they increase in 
length, and approach from each side to 
the roof of the mouth. The whale, while 
feeding, swims with his mouth wide open, 
which admits a great quantity of water 
containing insects, or small fish, on which 
ne subsists. The whale-bone acts a 


filter, or strainer, in retaining the little 
animals, while the water passes off at the 
corners of the mouth. 

52. Before the whalers leave the fishing 
station, they cut the blubber into small 
pieces, and put it into close casks. Some¬ 
times, however, when the ship has been 
very successful, there is a deficiency of 
casks: in that case, it is slightly salted, 
and packed away in the hold. But as the 
ship must necessarily pass through a warm¬ 
er climate, on her voyage homeward, the 
blubber, while packed in this manner, is 
liable to melt and be wasted, unless the 
weather should prove uncommonly cool. 

53. When the vessel has arrived in port, 
the blubber is found to be melted. Tc 
separate the oil from the fritters , or fenks, 
as the integuments and other impurities 
are called, the contents of the casks are 
poured into copper boilers, and heated: 
the heat causes a part of the latter to sink 
to the bottom, and the former is drawn oft’ 
into coolers, where other extraneous mat¬ 
ted settle. The pure or fine oil is then 
drawn off, for sale. An inferior quality of 
oil, called brown oil, is obtained from the 
dregs of the blubber. 

54. The spermaceti cachalot, or Physe- 
tcr Macrocephalus , is an animal belonging 
to the norwal genus, although it is gene¬ 
rally denominated the spermaceti whale. 
It is found in the greatest abundance in 
the Pacific Ocean, where it is sought by 
American, and other whalers, for the sake 
of the oil and spermaceti. This animal is 
gregarious, and is often met with in herds 
containing more than two hundred indi¬ 
viduals. 

55. Whenever a number of the cacha¬ 
lot are seen, several boats, manned each 
with six men, provided with harpoons and 
lances, proceed in pursuit; and, if possible, 
each boat strikes or fastens to a distinct 















THE FISHERMAN. 


P9 


animal, which, in most cases, is overcome 


without much difficulty. Being towed to 
the ship, it is deprived of its blubber, and 
the matter contained in the head, which 
consists of spermaceti combined with a 
small proportion of oil. The oil is reduced 
from the bluboer, soon after it has been 
taken on board, in “ try works,” with which 
every ship engaged in this fishery is pro¬ 
vided. 

56. About three tons of oil are commonly 
obtained from a large cachalot of this spe¬ 
cies, and from one to two tons from a small 
one, besides the head-matter. The man¬ 
ner in which these two products are treat¬ 
ed, when brought into port, has been de¬ 
scribed in the article on candle-making. 

57. The Biscayans were the first people 
who prosecuted the whale fishery, as a 
commercial pursuit In the twelfth, thir¬ 
teenth, and fourteenth centuries, they car¬ 
ried on this business to a considerable 
extent; but the whales taken by them 
were not so large as those which have 
since been captured in the polar seas. At 
length, the whales ceased to visit the Bay 
of Biscay, and the fishery in that quarter 
was of course terminated. 

58. The voyages of the English and 
Dutch to the Northern Ocean, in search 
of a passage to India, led to the discovery 
of the principal haunts of the whale, and 
induced individuals in those nations to fit 
out vessels to pursue these animals in the 
Northern latitudes, the harpooners and 
part of the crews being Biscayans. The 
whales were found in the greatest abun¬ 
dance, about the island of Spitzbergen, and 
were, at first, so easily captured, that extra 
vessels were sent out in ballast, to assist 
in bringing home the oil and whalebone; 
but the whales, retiring to the centre of 
the ocean, and to the*other side, tv the 


Greenland seas, soon became scarce abon 
that island. 

59. The whale fishery was revived, as 
above stated, about the beginning of the 
seventeenth century; and, with the Dutch, 
it was in the most flourishing condition in 
1680, when it employed about two hundred 
and sixty ships, and fourteen thousand 
men. The wars at the end of the eigh¬ 
teenth, and the beginning ol the nineteenth 
centuries, extending their baleful influence 
to almost every part of the ocean, annihi¬ 
lated this branch of business, among the 
Dutch; and, in 1828, only a single whale 
ship sailed from Holland. 

60. The English whale fishery was, at 
first, carried on by companies enjoying 
exclusive privileges: but the pursuit was 
attended with little success. In 1732, 
Parliament decreed a bounty of twenty 
shillings per ton, on every whaler measur¬ 
ing more than two hundred tons; and, al¬ 
though this bounty was increased in 1749 
to forty shillings, yet the English whale 
fishery has never been very flourishing. 

61. The whale fishery has been carried 
on with greater success from the United 
States, than from any other country. It 
was begun by the colonists, on their own 
shores, at a very early period; but the 
whales having abandoned the coasts of 
North America, these hardy navigators 
pursued them into the northern and south¬ 
ern oceans. 

62. The number of American vessels 
now employed in pursuit of the spermaceti 
cachalot, and the mystecetus, amounts to 
about four hundred, employing ten thou¬ 
sand men. The inhabitants of the island 
of Nantucket, and of the town of New- 
Bedford, are more extensively engaged in 
these fisheries than the people of any other 
parts of the United States. 


) > 










1. The earliest notice we have of the 
construction of a building to float on water, 
is that which relates to Noah’s Ark. This 
was the largest vessel that has ever been 
ouilt, and the circumstance proves that the 
urts, at that early period, had been brought 
u) considerable perfection: yet, as several 
centuries had elapsed, after the flood, before 
the descendants of Noah had much occasion 
for floating vessels, the art of constructing 
them seems to have been measurably lost. 

2. Early records, which perhaps are 
worthy of credit, state that the Egyptians 
first traversed the river Nile upon rafts, 
then in the canoe; and that, to these suc¬ 
ceeded the boat, built with joist, fastened 
together with wooden pins, and rendered 
water-tight by interposing the leaves of 
the papyrus. To this boat was, at length, 


added a mast of acanthus, and a sail ol 
papyrus; but, being prejudiced against 
the sea, because it swallowed up their 
sacred river, which they were accustomed 
to worship as a god, they never attempted 
to construct vessels adapted to marine 
navigation. 

3. The Phoenicians, a nation nearly as 
ancient as the Egyptian, being situated 
directly on the sea, without the advantages 
of a noble river, were compelled to provide 
means for sailing on a wider expanse of 
water. It is said, however, that they first 
traversed the Mediterranean, and even 
visited distant islands, with no better means 
of conveyance than a raft of timber. This 
is rendered somewhat probable, from the 
fact, that the Peruvians, even at the pre¬ 
sent time, venture upon the Pacific Ocean 





















































THE SHIPWRIGHT. 


101 


on their balza, a raft made from a spongy 
tree of that name. 

4. The vessels first constructed by the 
Phoenicians, were used for commercial 
purposes: they were flat-bottomed, broad, 
and of a small draught; and the Car¬ 
thaginians and Greeks likewise adopted 
this general shape. The ships of war, in 
early times, were generally mere row¬ 
boats, in which the combatants rushed 
upon each other, and decided the combat 
by valour and physical strength. 

5. By successive improvements, the 
ships of antiquity were, at length, brought 
to combine good proportion with consider¬ 
able beauty. The prows were sometimes 
ornamented with the sculptured figures of 
the heathen deities, and otherwise adorned 
with paint and gilding; while the sterns, 
which were usually in the form of a shield, 
were elaborately wrought in carved work. 
The approved length of a ship of war, was 
six or eight times its breadth; and that 
for mercantile purposes, four times the 
jreadth: hence, the distinction of long 

'ps, and round ships. 

6. Both the long and round ships had a 
single mast, which could be taken down 
or elevated at pleasure. These vessels 
were, however, propelled with oars on 
occasions that required it; and the former, 
in their improved state, were properly gal¬ 
leys with one, two, or three banks of oars, 
which extended from one end of the vessel 
to the other. The rowers were all placed 
under the deck; and, in time of battle, the 
combatants contended above, being in part 
defended from the missiles of opposing 
foes by shields, and additionally by screens 
and towers covered with raw hides. The 
bow of each vessel was armed with a 
brazen or iron beak, with which the con¬ 
tending parties often stove in the sides of 
'ach other’s vessels. 


7. The general size of vessels in the 
best days of antiquity, was not greater 
than that of our sloops and schooners; but 
there are instances on record, which prove 
that they occasionally equalled in capacity 
the largest of modern times. In the early 
ages, they were very small, and, for seve¬ 
ral centuries, were drawn upon the shore 
at the termination of every voyage. Strand¬ 
ing, however, became impracticable, after 
the increase in size, and the addition of the 
keel. The anchor and cable were there¬ 
fore invented, to confine the ship at a suit¬ 
able distance from the shore. At first, the 
anchor was nothing more than a large 
stone: afterwards, it was wood and stone 
combined; and finally, iron was the sole 
material. 

8. The invasion of the Roman empire 
by the northern barbarians, caused the 
operations of war to be almost exclusively 
conducted on the land: this, together with 
the destruction of commerce during the 
general desolation of those ruthless incur¬ 
sions, and the barbarism of the conquerors, 
occasioned a retrogression, and, in some 
parts of Europe, nearly the total destruc¬ 
tion of the art of building ships. 

9. The active trade which arose in the 

Mediterranean, during the middle ages, 

and the naval enterprises connected with 

the Crusades, occasioned a revival of the 

art of constructing ships; yet, it did not 

advance beyond the condition in which 

the Carthaginians had left it, until about 

the middle of the fourteenth century. At 

* 

this era, the inconsiderable galleys of for¬ 
mer times began to be superseded by larger 
vessels, in which, however, oars were not 
entirely disused. 

10. The great change in the general 
construction of vessels, arose from the dis¬ 
covery of the polarity of the magnet, and 
the application of astronomy to nautical 












102 


TIIE SHIPWRIGHT. 


pursuits; for, by these means, the mariner 
was released from his dependence on a 
sight of the land, in guiding his vessel on 
its course. Larger ships were therefore j 
constructed, capable of withstanding the J 
power of more violent storms and loftier i 
waves. 

11. To the Italians, Catalans, and Por- i 
tuguese, was ship-building most consider- Jj 
ably indebted, in the early days of its' 
revival. The Spaniards followed up their i 
discovery of the New World with a rapid 
improvement both in the form and size of j 
their ships; some of which even rated at 
two thousand tons burden. In more mo¬ 
dern times, it is said, that the Spaniards 
and French are entitled to the credit of 
nearly all the improvements which have 
been made in the theory of the art; the 
English having never contributed essen¬ 
tially 1.0 advance it, although the greatest 
naval power of this or any other time. 

12. In the United States, very great 
improvements have been made in the con¬ 
struction of vessels, since the commence¬ 
ment of the present century. Our build¬ 
ers, however, are less guided by scientific 
rules than by experience and a practised 
eye; yet, it is generally conceded, that 
our ships of war and first-rate merchant¬ 
men, are superior, in swiftness and beauty, 
to those of any other country. 

13. In Europe, the first thing done 
towards building a vessel, is to exhibit it 
in three distinct views, by as many sepa¬ 
rate drawings; but, in the United States, 
the builder commences by framing a com¬ 
plete wooden model of the proposed con¬ 
struction,—the thing itself in miniature. 
From this practice of our naval architects, 
have arisen the superior beauty and excel¬ 
lence of our vessels. 

14. The timber generally used in the 
construction of American vessels, is li’^e- 


oak, pine, chestnut, locust, and cedar. 
The trees of mature growth are chosen, 
and girdled in the beginning of winter, at 
which time they contain but little sap: 
when sufficiently dry and hardened, the 
trees are felled; and, after the timber has 
been roughly hewn, it is carefully stored 
in some dry, airy place, not much exposed 
to wind or sun. 

15. In collecting ship-timber, the great¬ 
est difficulty is found in procuring the 
crooked sticks, which form the sides or 
ribs of the skeleton of a vessel. In coun¬ 
tries where ship-timber has become on 
object of careful cultivation, this difficulty 
is anticipated by bending the young trees 
to the desired form, and confining them 
there, until they have permanently re¬ 
ceived the proper inclination. The timber 
is brought to market in its rough state, and 
sold by the foot. 

16. The timber having been selected, 
the workmen proceed to fashion the va¬ 
rious parts of the proposed vessel, with 
appropriate tools, being guided in their 
operations by patterns, which have been 
made after the exact form of the various 
parts of the model. Much care is taken 
to avoid cutting the wood contrary to the 
grain, that its strength may not be impaired. 

17. After all the parts of the frame have 
been made ready, they are put together. 
The several blocks of timber on which the 
vessel is raised, are called the stocks; and 
to these pieces, the foundation, called the 
keel , is temporarily fastened, in an inclined 
position. The keel is inserted into the 
stern-post at one end, and into the stem at 
the other. The floor-timbers are next 
fixed in the keel, every other one being 
there firmly bolted and riveted. Each of 
these timbers is a branch and part of the 
body of a tree; and, when composing a 
part of a vessel, they bear the same rela^ 












THE SHIPWRIGHT. 


103 


tion to it as the ribs to the human body: 
with equal propriety, the keel has been 
(compared to the vertebral column, or back¬ 
bone. 

18. The next step is to apply and fasten 
the planks, which serve not only to exclude 
the water, but to bind all the parts firmly 
and harmoniously together. Simple as this 
part of the operation may seem to be, it is 
the most difficult to be effected, and re¬ 
quires a preconcerted plan as much as any 
other part of the fabric. When it is ne¬ 
cessary to bend a plank at the bow or stern, 
it is heated by steam, and then forced into 
place with screws and levers. The planks 
are fastened with iron or copper bolts. 

19. The planking having been finished, 
and several particulars attended to, which 
cannot be well understood from description, 
the vessel is ready for the work of the 
caulker, who carefully stops all the seams 
with oakum, and smears them with pitch. 
After the scraper has cleared away the 
superfluous pitch, water is pumped into 
the hold, to ascertain if there be any leak. 

20. The bottom of the vessel is next 
sheathed, either with sheets of copper or 
pine boards, to protect it from the worms: 
the latter materials are employed when 
the planks have been fastened with iron; 
since the copper would cause the bolt- 
heads to corrode, if placed against them. 
In either case, sheets of paper, soaked in 
hot pitch, are interposed between the 
planks and the sheathing. 

21. The vessel is now ready to be re¬ 
moved from the stocks to the water. This 
removal is called launching, which, in 
many cases, requires much skill in the 
preparation, and successive management. 
If there is no permanent inclined plane in 
the slip, on which the vessel may glide 
into the water, a temporary one is pre¬ 
pared, consisting of two platforms of solid 


timber, erected cne on each side of tne 
keel, at a distance of a few feet from it, 
and extending from the stem into tha 
water. Upon this double platform, which 
is called the ways , is erected another set 
of timbers, and the space between these 
and the vessel is filled all along with 
wedges. The whole of this superstructure 
is called the cradle, and the extremities of 
it are fastened to the keel, at the bow and 
stern, with chains and ropes. 

22. Every thing having been thus pre¬ 
pared, the wedges are simultaneously 
driven on both sides: by this means, the 
vessel is raised from the stocks, and made 
to rest entirely on the cradle. After the 
shores have been all removed, the cradle, 
with its weighty burden, begins to move; 
and, in a moment, the vessel is launched 
upon its destined element. 

23. Among the ancients, a launch was 
ever an occasion of great festivity. The 
mariners were crowned with wreaths, and 
the ship was bedecked with strtamers and 
garlands. Safely afloat, she was purified 
with a lighted torch, an egg, and brim¬ 
stone; and solemnly consecrated to the 
god whose image she bore. In our less 
poetic times, there is no lack of feasting 
and merriment, although the ceremony of 
consecration is different; the oldest sailor 
on board merely breaking a bottle of wine 
or rum over the figure-head,—still, per¬ 
chance, the image of father Neptune, or 
Apollo. 

24. The vessel, now brought to the 
wharf, is to be equipped. The mode of 
doing this, is varied according as it may be 
a ship, brig, hermaphrodite brig, schooner, 
or sloop. The masts are first erected, and 
these are supplied with the necessary ap¬ 
paratus of spars, rigging, and sails. The 
latter are furnished by the sail-maker, who 
is sometimes denominated the ship's tailor 













J 


THE MARINER 


1. The business of the mariner consists 
in navigating ships, and other vessels, from 
one port to another. This is an employ¬ 
ment that requires much decisive resolu¬ 
tion; tfnd. Horace has well said, that “his 
breast must have been bound with oak and 
triple brass, who first committed his frail 
bark to the tempestuous sea.” There is 
certainly nothing which speaks louder in 
praise of human ingenuity, than that art 
by which man is able to forsake the land, 
contend successfully with winds and waves, 
and reach, with unerring certainty, his 
liestined port in some distant part of the 
wor d. 

2. Nor are the skill and intrepidity ex- 
nibited in this arduous employment, more 
worthy of our admiration, than the won- 
uerfiu! advantages resulting from it; for, j 


we are indebted to the exercise ot this art, 
for those improvements in our condition, 
which arise from the exchange of the 
superfluities of one country for those of 
another; and, above all, for the interchange 
of sentiments, which renders human know¬ 
ledge coextensive with the world. 

3. Ship-building is so intimately con¬ 
nected with the art of navigation, that the 
historical part of the former subject is 
equally applicable to the latter: it is, there¬ 
fore, unnecessary to be particular on this 
point. We shall merely supply some omis¬ 
sions in the preceding article. 

4. The sailors of antiquity confined their 
navigation chiefly to the rivers, lakes, and 
inland seas; seldom venturing out of sight 
of land, unless, from their knowledge of 
the coasts ahead, they were certain t<r 




































THE MARINER. 


105 


meet with it again in a short time. When 
they thus ventured from the land, or were 
driven from it by tempests, the stars and 
planets were their only guides. 

5. The qualifications of a skilful pilot 
or master, even for the Mediterranean seas, 
in those days, required more study, and 
more practical information, than are ne¬ 
cessary to render a mariner a complete 
general navigator, in the present improved 
state of the science of navigation; for then 
he must needs be acquainted, not only with 
the general management of the ship, but 
also with all the ports, land-marks, rocks, 
quicksands, and other dangers, which lay 
in the track of his course. Besides this, 
he was required to be familiar with the 
course of the winds, and the indications 
that preceded them; together with the 
movements of the heavenly bodies, and the 
influence which they were supposed to 
exert on the weather; nor was the ability 
to read the various omens which were 
gathered from the sighing of the wind in 
the trees, the murmurs of the waters and 
their dash upon the shore, the flight of 
birds, and the gambol of fishes, a qualifica¬ 
tion to be dispensed with. 

6. A voyage, in ancient times, was a 
momentous undertaking, and was usually 
preceded by sacrifices to those gods who 
were supposed to preside over the winds 
and the waves. All omens were carefully 
regarded; and a very small matter, such 
'as the perching of swallows on the ship, 
or an accidental sneeze to the left, was 
sufficient to delay departure. When, un¬ 
der proper auspices, a vessel or fleet had 
set sail, and had advanced some distance, 
it was customary to release a number of 
doves, which had been brought from home; 
the safe arrival of these birds, at the houses 
of the voyagers, was considered an aus¬ 
picious omen of the return of the fleet 

14 


7. Having escaped the multiplied dan¬ 
gers of the sea, the sailors, on their return, 
fulfilled the vows which they had made 
before their departure, or in seasons of 
peril; offering thanks to Neptune, and 
sacrifices to Jupiter, or some other of their 
gods, to whose protection they may have 
committed themselves. Those who had 
suffered shipwreck, felt themselves under 
greater obligations of gratitude; and, in 
addition to the usual sacrifices, they com¬ 
monly offered the garment in which they 
had been saved, together with a pictorial 
representation of the disaster. If the in¬ 
dividual escaped only with life, his clothing 
having been totally lost, his hair was shorn 
from the head, and consecrated to the 
tutelar deity. 

8. There is much that is beautiful in 
these simple acts of piety; and similar 
customs, with regard to shipwrecked mari¬ 
ners, are still in existence in the Catholic 
countries of the Mediterranean; but the 
worship of the heathen deities having been 
discontinued, a favourite saint, or perchance 
the true God, is substituted for them. 
Although such acts of piety may not avail 
to avert impending danger, yet their natu¬ 
ral tendency doubtless is to inspire courage 
to meet it, when it may arise. 

9. The Carthaginians, for several cen¬ 
turies, were more extensively engaged in 
commerce, than any other people of an¬ 
tiquity ; and, as they carried on tneir 
lucrative trade with other nations, and 
their own colonies, by means of ships, they 
exceeded, all others in the art of navigation. 
Not content with exploring every nook 
and corner of the Mediterranean, they 
passed the Pillars of Hercules, as the pro¬ 
montories of the Straits of Gibraltar were 
then called, and visited the Atlantic coasts 
of Europe, as far north as the Scilly 
Islands, then denominated the Cassorideg. 







106 


THE MARINER. 


It is asserted by Pliny, that Hanno even 
circumnavigated Africa. 

10. The destruction of Carthage by the 
Romans, in the year before Christ 146, 
interfered with improvements in the art of 
navigation: and the invasion of the north¬ 
ern barbarians, several centuries after¬ 
wards, extinguished nearly all the know¬ 
ledge which had been previously acquired: 
nor was it again revived, and brought to 
the state in which it existed in the flourish¬ 
ing era of antiquity, until about the middle 
of the fourteenth century. 

11. After the period just mentioned, im¬ 
provements in this art followed each other 
in close succession. The chief cause of 
this rapid advance, was the discovery of 
the polarity of the magnet, and the conse¬ 
quent invention of the mariner’s compass. 
The power of the loadstone to attract iron, 
was early known to the Greeks and Chi¬ 
nese; but its property of pointing in a 
particular direction, when suspended and 
left to move freely, was not suspected until 
about the year 1200 of our era. 

12. At first, mariners were accustomed 
to place the magnetic needle on a floating 
straw, whenever they needed its guidance; 
but, in 1302, one Flavio Giaio, an obscure 
individual of the kingdom of Naples, placed 
it on a permanent pivot, and added a cir¬ 
cular card : still, it was nearly half a cen¬ 
tury after this, before navigators properly 
appreciated, and implicitly relied on, this 
new guide. The compass did not reach 
its present improved state, until the middle 
of the sixteenth century. 

33. As soon as the reputation of this 
Instrument had become well established, 
navigation assumed a bolder character; 
and the capacity of vessels having been 
enlarged to meet this adventurous spirit, 
oars were laid aside as inapplicable, and 


sails alone were relied upon, as means of 
propulsion. 

14. Navigation, in the early days of its 
revival, was indebted to the Portuguese 
for many valuable improvements. To them, 
also, is the world under obligation for many 
splendid discoveries; among which was 
that of a passage by sea to India. This 
long-desired discovery was made in 1497, 
by Vasco de Gama, who had been sert out 
for the purpose by Emanuel, king of Por¬ 
tugal. 

15. Five years before Vasco de Gama 
had found his way to India, by the way of 
the Cape of Good Hope, Columbus made 
his discovery of the New World. This 
great man had conceived or adopted the 
idea, that the form of our earth was spheri¬ 
cal;—contrary to the generally received 
opinion, that it was an extended plane;— 
and Learning that India stretched to an 
unknown distance eastward, he supposed 
that, by sailing in an opposite direction, 
the navigator would meet with its eastern 
extremity. 

16. Pursuing this idea, he applied suc¬ 
cessively to the governments of several 
states and kingdoms, for patronage to ena¬ 
ble him to test its correctness; and having, 
at length, succeeded in obtaining three 
small vessels, with the necessary equip¬ 
ments, from Ferdinand and Isabella, sove¬ 
reigns of Arragon and Castile, he proceed¬ 
ed on his proposed voyage, which resulted . 
in the discovery of the American continent. 

17. These two great discoveries gave 
another powerful impulse to navigation; 
and inventions and improvements multi¬ 
plied in rapid succession. The learned 
and ingenious, who at different times havt 
turned their attention to the subject of na¬ 
vigation, have supplied the mariner with 
various means, by which he can direct nia 






THE MARINER. 


107 


course on the deep with accuracy and 
Certainty. 

18. The instruments now employed in 
navigation, are the mariner’s compass, the 
azimuth compass, the quadrant, the sex¬ 
tant, the chronometer, the half minute- 
glass, the log, and the sounding-line. In 
addition to these, the general navigator 
needs accurate maps and charts, lists of 
the latitude and longitude of every part of 
the world, the time of high water at every 
port, and a book of navigation, containing 
tables, to aid him in performing various 
Calculations with facility; and, with a 
view to calculate the longitude by obser¬ 
vation, he should be furnished with the 
Nautical Almanac, containing the places 
and declinations of the fixed stars and 
planets, and especially the distances of the 
moon from the sun and other heavenly 
bodies. 

19. The mariner’s compass, as has been 
before observed, is employed to indicate 
the various points of the horizon; but the 
magnetic needle varying more or less from 
the exact northern and southern direction, 
the azimuth compass is used, to show the 
degree of that variation. The quadrant 
and sextant are employed to ascertain the 
altitude and relative position of the heavenly 
bodies, that the mariner may determine the 
latitude and longitude in which his vessel 
may be. The chronometer i3 nothing 
more than a watch, designed to measure 
time with great accuracy. This instru¬ 
ment is used to determine the longitude. 

20. The log is used for ascertaining the 
velocity of the ship on the water. It con¬ 
sists of a quadrangular piece of wood, eight 
or nine inches long, to which is attached 
a small cord, having knots in it, at proper 
distances from each other. In the appli¬ 
cation, the log is thrown upon the water, 


where it will not be disturbed by the wake 
of the ship; and the cord, being wound 
upon a reel, passes from it as fast as the 
vessel moves in the water. The number 
of knots, which pass off every half minute, 
indicates the number of miles which the 
ship sails per hour : hence, in nautical lan¬ 
guage, knots and miles are synonymous 
terms. The sounding-line is a small cord, 
with several pounds of lead of a conical 
figure attached to it; and is employed in 
trying the depth of the water, and the 
quality of the bottom. 

21. Navigation is either common or pro¬ 
per. The former is usually called coast¬ 
ing, as the vessel is either on the same or 
neighbouring coast, and is seldom far from 
land, or out of sounding. The latter is 
applied to long voyages upon the main 
ocean, when considerable skill in mathe¬ 
matics and astronomy, together with an 
aptness in the use of instruments for celes¬ 
tial observations, are required in the cap¬ 
tain or master. 

22. The application of steam to the pur¬ 
poses of navigation, is one of the greatest 
advantages that science has bestowed upon 
this art. In point of economy, however, 
steam-boats have not yet been able to com¬ 
pete extensively with vessels propelled by 
sails, except in the conveyance of passen¬ 
gers ; and even in this case, their applica¬ 
tion has hitherto been chiefly confined to 
rivers, lakes, bays, and arms of the sea; 
although the practicability of navigating 
the ocean by steam, has been proved by 
actual experiment. 

23. The chief obstacle to the employ¬ 
ment of steam, in long voyages, arises 
from the difficulty of generating a suffi¬ 
cient quantity of this agent, with the fuel 
which could be carried without overbur- 
thening the vessel; but a remedy for this 







108 


THE MARINER. 


inconvenience will probably be found, in 
improvements in the construction of steam- 
generators. 

24. The power of confined steam acting 
by its expansive force, was discovered by 
the celebrated Marquis of Worcester, about 
the middle of the seventeenth century; 
out the first working steam-engine was 
constructed in 1705, by Thomas New¬ 
comer, a blacksmith of Dartmouth, Devon¬ 
shire, England. About the year 1709, 
James Watt, a native of Glasgow, added 
a great number of improvements, of his 
own invention. 

25. Steam navigation was first suggest¬ 
ed in England, in 1736, hy Jonathan Hulls. 
It was first tried in practice in France, in 
1782, by the Marquis de Jouffroy, and 
nearly at the same time by James Rumsey, 
of Virginia, and John Fitch, of Philadel¬ 
phia ; but it was first rendered completely 
successful at New-York, in 1807, by Robert 
Fulton. 

26. The sailors employed by the captain, 
to aid him in navigating his ship, are called 
a crew; and the individuals composing it 
are responsible to the captain, the captain 
to the owners, and the owners to the mer¬ 
chants, for all damages arising from negli¬ 
gence, or bad management. 

27. In England, ample provisions are 
made at Greenwich Hospital, or by pen¬ 
sions, for seamen disabled by age or other¬ 
wise. These benefits, however, are ex¬ 
tended only to those who have been en¬ 


gaged in the national service. This noble 
and politic institution is supported partly 
by public bounty, and in part by private 
donations, and a tax of sixpence per month, 
deducted from the wages of all the seamen 
of the nation. Marine Hospitals, for the 
temporary accommodation of seamen, suf¬ 
ficing from disease, have been established 
, in several cities of the continent of Europe, 
as well as of the United States. 

28. Mariners have ever been a distinct 
.elass of men, and in their general charac¬ 
ters very similar in every age of the world. 
Their superstitious regard of the many 
signs of good and bad luck, is nearly the 
same now that it was two or three thou¬ 
sand years ago. In ancient times, they 
had their lucky and unlucky days; and 
now, very few sailors are willing to leave 
port on Friday, lest the circumstance bring 
upon them some disaster, before the con¬ 
clusion of the proposed voyage. 

29. Superstitions of this nature, how¬ 
ever, are not confined to the navigators of 
the deep. Even in this country, where the 
inhabitants enjoy superior intellectual ad¬ 
vantages, and boast a high degree of intel¬ 
ligence, thousands of persons who have 
never been on board of a ship, are still 
under the influence of such heathen no¬ 
tions, notwithstanding their pretended be¬ 
lief in Christianity, which, in all cases, 
when properly understood, would prevent 
the forebodings of evil, or expectations of 
good, from unimportant prognostics. 





1. The word merchant , in its most ex¬ 
tended application, signifies, a person who 
deals in merchandise. This definition, 
with some exceptions, agrees very well 
with general usage in this country; al¬ 
though, in England, the term is principally 
restricted to those dealers who export and 
import goods on their own account, either 
in their own or in chartered vessels. In 
the United States, dealers of this class 
are denominated importing and exporting 
merchants; or simply, importers and ex¬ 
porters. 

2. Such merchants, both here and in 
Europe, are distinguished from each other 
by the kind of goods in which they traffic, or 
by the foreign country in which they have 
their chief correspondence: thus, one who 
deals in tobacco is called a tobacco-mer¬ 


chant; a wholesale dealer in wines, is 
called a wine-merchant; a West India, 
East India, or Turkey merchant, exports 
goods to, and imports goods from, those 
respective countries. 

3. The business of merchants, in foreign 
countries, is usually transacted by agents, 
called factors, or commission-merchants, 
to whom goods are consigned to be sold, 
and by whom other articles of merchandise 
are purchased, and returned according to 
order. Sometimes an agent, called a super¬ 
cargo, accompanies the vessel; or the 
captain may act in this capacity. Goods, 
however, are often obtained by order, with¬ 
out the intervention of an agency of any 
kind. 

4. Almost every sort of merchandise 
brought from a foreign country, is subject 

K 





































































































































































110 


THE MERCHANT. 


to the imposition of duties by the govern¬ 
ment of the country in which it is received. 
These duties are paid at the Custom-House , 
to persons appointed by the constituted au¬ 
thorities to collect them. As soon as a 
vessel has entered the harbour from abroad, 
it is visited by a custom-house officer, called 
a Tide- Waiter , whose business it is to see 
that no part of the cargo be removed, until 
measures have been taken to secure the 
customs. 

5. Goods brought into the country by 
importers, are frequently sold, in succes¬ 
sion, to several merchants of different 
grades, before they come to the hands of 
the consumers. Cloths or stuffs, of differ¬ 
ent kinds, for instance, may be first sold 
by the bale to one merchant, who, in turn, 
may dispose of them by the package to 
another, and this last may retail them in 
small quantities to a greater number of 
customers. 

6. Dealers in a small way, in cities and 
large towns, are frequently denominated 
shop-keepers; but those who do an exten¬ 
sive retail business, are usually called 
merchants or grocers, according as they 
deal in dry goods or groceries. In cities, 
the extensive demand for goods enables 
retailers to confine their attention to par¬ 
ticular classes of articles; such as gro¬ 
ceries, hardware, crockery, a few kinds of 
dry goods, or some articles of domestic 
manufacture: but in other places, where 
trade is more limited, the merchant is 
obliged to keep a more general assortment. 

7. The general retail merchant is com¬ 
pelled to transact business with a great 
number of wholesale dealers, to whom he 
pays cash in hand, or agrees to pay it at 
some future period: say, in four, six, nine, 
or twelve months. The people in his 
vicinity, in turn, purchase his goods on 
similar conditions,—with this difference, 


that they often substitute for cash agricul¬ 
tural and other productions, which the 
merchant, at length, turns into ready 
money. 

8. Barter, or the exchange of commodi¬ 
ties, prevails to a great extent, in country 
places, in almost every part of the United 
States. In such exchanges, the currency 
of the country is made the standard of 
reference: for example, a merchant re¬ 
ceiving from a customer twenty bushels 
of wheat, estimated at one dollar per 
bushel, gives in return twenty dollars’ 
worth of goods, at his marked prices; or, 
in other words, he gives credit for the 
wheat, and charges the goods. On the 
same principle, merchants of the first class 
often exchange the productions of their 
own country for those of another. 

9. Merchants, or store-keepers, as they 
are indifferently called in some places, 
whose location is distant from the sea¬ 
board, visit the city in which they deal 
once or twice a year, for the purpose of 
laying in their stock of goods; but, in 
order to keep up their assortment, they 
sometimes order small lots in the interim. 
Retailers more conveniently situated, pur¬ 
chase a smaller amount of goods at a time, 
and replenish their stores more frequently. 

10. Commerce, on the principles of bar¬ 
ter, or a simple exchange of one com¬ 
modity for another, must have been prac¬ 
tised in the early days of Adam himself, 
although we have no positive record of the 
fact; for it cannot be imagined that the 
arts, which are stated in the scripture to 
have flourished long before the flood, could 
have existed without commercial transac¬ 
tions. The period at which the precious 
metals began to be employed as a standard 
of value, or as a medium of commercial 
intercourse, is not known. They were 
used for this purpose in the time of Abra- 











THE MERCHANT. 


Ill 


ham, and probably many centuries before 
his day. 

11. The earliest hint respecting the ex¬ 
istence of trade between different nations, 
is to be found in the book of Genesis; 
where the transaction regarding the sale 
of Joseph to the Ishmaelites or Midianites, 
is mentioned. These merchants, it appears, 
were travelling in a caravan to Egypt, 
then the most cultivated and refined part 
of the world: their camels were loaded 
with balm, myrrh, and spices. The first 
of these articles was the production of 
Gilead; the second, of Arabia; and the 
last was probably from India, as in that 
country the finer spices are produced. If 
this were really the case, commerce, in its 
widest sense, was carried on much earlier 
than is generally supposed. 

12. The fertility of Egypt, and its cen¬ 
tral position, made it an emporium of 
commerce; and there it flourished, in an 
eminent degree, long before it was cul¬ 
tivated in Europe and in Western Asia. 
For several ages, however, the Egyptians, 
on account of their superstitious prejudices 
against the sea, carried on no maritime 
commerce. 

13. The Phoenicians were the first peo¬ 
ple who used the Mediterranean sea, as a 
highway for the transportation of mer¬ 
chandise. Tyre and Sidon were their 
chief cities; and the latter was called a 
great, and the former a strong city, even 
in the time of Joshua, fifteen hundred 
years before the advent of Christ. These 
people, in their original association as a 
nation, possessed but a small territory; and, 
being surrounded by many powerful na¬ 
tions, they never attempted its enlarge¬ 
ment on the land side. 

14. The settlement of the Israelites in 
the “Promised Land.” circumscribed their 


limits to a very small territory, and com 
pelled them to colonize a great number of 
their inhabitants. The colonies which they 
formed in the various countries bordering 
upon the Mediterranean, and on the islands, 
enlarged the boundaries of civilization, and 
gfeatly extended their trade. 

15. The Phoenicians continued their 
colonial system for many centuries after 
the period just mentioned, and even ex¬ 
tended it to the Atlantic coasts of Europe; 
but the most distinguished of all their colo¬ 
nies was the one which founded the city 
of Carthage, on the northern coast of 
Africa, about the year 869 before Christ. 
Elissa, or, as she is otherwise called, Dido, 
the reputed leader of this colony, makes 
a conspicuous figure in one of the books 
of Virgil’s iEneid. 

16. Carthage, adopting the same system 
which had so long been pursued by the 
great cities of Phoenicia, arose, in a few 
centuries, to wealth and splendour: but 
changing, at length, her mercantile for a 
military character, she ruled her depend¬ 
ent colonies with a rod of despotism. This 
produced a spirit of resistance on the part 
of her distant subjects, who applied to 
Rome for aid to resist her tyranny. The 
consequence of this application was, the 
three “ Punic wars,” so renowned in his¬ 
tory, and which terminated in the destruc¬ 
tion of Carthage, in the year 146 before 
the Christian era. During the first Punic 
war, Carthage contained seven hundred 
thousand inhabitants; at its destruction, 
scarcely five thousand were found within 
its walls. 

17. The period of the greatest pros¬ 
perity of Tyre, may be placed 588 years 
before Christ, at which time the remark¬ 
able prophecies of Ezekiel concerning it 
were delivered. F ./ti : ft p r this, it was 










112 


THE MERCHANT. 


greatly injured by Nebuchadnezzar; and 
was finally destroyed by Alexander the 
Great, about the year 332 before Christ 
yia A new channel was opened to com¬ 
merce by the monarch just mentioned, he 
having founded a city in Egypt, to which 
he gave the name of Alexandria. Mis 
object seems to have been, to render this 
city the centre of the commercial world; 
and its commanding position, at the mouth 
erf* the Nile, was well calculated to make 
it so, since it was easy of access from the 
west by the Mediterranean, from the east 
by the Red Sea, and from the central coun¬ 
tries of Asia by the Isthmus of Suez. 

19. The plans of Alexander were car¬ 
ried on with vigour by Ptolemy, who re¬ 
ceived Egypt as his portion of the Mace¬ 
donian empire, after the death of his master; 
and, by his liberality, he induced great 
numbers of people to settle in the new 
metropolis, for the purposes of trade. Far 
south, on the Red Sea, he also founded a 
city, which he called Berenice, and which 
he designed as a depfit for the precious 
commodities brought into his kingdom from 
India. From this city, goods were trans¬ 
ported on camels across the country, to a 
port on the Nile; and thence, they were 
taken down the river to Alexandria. 

20. Ptolemy also kept large fleets, both 
on the Mediterranean and the Red Sea, 
for the protection of commerce, and the 
defence of his dominions; yet, the Egyp¬ 
tians, even under the Ptolemies, never 
attempted a direct trade to India. They, 
as the Phoenicians and their own progeni¬ 
tors had done for ages, depended upon the 
Arabian merchants for the productions of 
that country. 

21. The Greeks, before their subjuga¬ 
tion to the Roman power, had paid much 
attention to nautical affairs; but this had 
been chiefly for warlike dominion raiher 


than for commercial purposes. The city 
of Corinth, however, had become wealthy 
by the attention of its inhabitants to manu¬ 
factures and trade; but it was destroyed 
by the same barbarian people who, about 
this time, annihilated Carthage. Both of 
these cities were afterwards favoured by 
Julius Cffisar; but they never regained 
anything like their former importance. 

22. Rome having, at length, obtained 
the complete dominion of the Mediter¬ 
ranean Sea, and the countries bordering 
upon it, as well as of many others more 
distant, and less easy of access, became 
the great mart for the sale of merchandise 
of every description, from all parts of the 
known world. For the various commodi¬ 
ties brought to the city, the Romans paid 
gold and silver, as they had nothing else 
to export in return. The money which 
they had exacted as tribute, or which they 
had obtained by plunder, was thus returned 
to the nations from which it had been taken. 

23. The subjected provinces continued to 
pour their choicest productions into Rome, 
so long as she retained the control of the 
empire; in this way contributing to ener¬ 
vate, by the many luxuries they afforded, 
the power by which they had been sub¬ 
dued. The eternal city ,as she is sometimes 
called, in the days of her extensive do¬ 
minion contained about three millions of 
inhabitants; and, although this immense 
population was chiefly supplied by importa¬ 
tions, the Romans never esteemed the cha¬ 
racter of a merchant;—they despised the 
peaceful pursuits of industry, whilst they 
regarded it honourable to attack without 
provocation, and plunder without remorse 
the weaker nations of the earth. 

24. In the year 328 of the Christian era 
Byzantium was made the seat of govern 
r ent of the Roman empire by Constantine. 

i who, with a view of perpetuating his own 









THE MERCHANT. 


113 


name, called his new capital Constantino¬ 
ple. However necessary this removal 
may have been, to keep in subjugation the 
eastern provinces, it was fatal to the se¬ 
curity of the western division. The rivalry 
between the two cities produced frequent 
contests for dominion; and these, together 
with the general corruption and effeminacy 
of the people themselves, rendered it im¬ 
possible to resist the repeated and fierce 
invasions of the barbarous people from the 
northern parts of Europe. 

25. These invasions commenced in the 
latter part of the fourth century; and, in 
less than two hundred years, a great por¬ 
tion of the inhabitants was destroyed, and 
the whole Western Empire was completely 
subverted. The conquerors were too bar¬ 
barous to encourage or protect commerce; 
and, like the arts of peace and civilization 
generally, it sunk, with few exceptions, 
amid the general ruin. 

26. The empire? of Constantinople, or, 
as it is usually called, the Eastern empire, 
continued in existence several centuries 
after the Western Empire had been over¬ 
run ; and commerce continued to flow, for 
a considerable time, through some of its 
former channels to the capital. At length, 
the Indian trade, which had so long been 
carried on chiefly through Egypt by the 
Red Sea, was changed to a more northern 
route, through Persia. 

27 Soon after the commencement of 
the pretended mission of Mohammed, or 
Mahomet, in 609 of the Christian era, the 
power of the Arabians, since called Sara¬ 
cens, began to rise. The followers of the 
Prpphet, impelled by religious zeal, and 
allured by plunder, in less than 150 years 
extended their dominion almost to the bor¬ 
ders of China on the one side, and to the 
Mediterranean and Atlantic on the other. 
The trade of the East, of course, fell into 

15 


their hands; and they continued to enjoy 
it, until they, in turn, were subdued by 
the Turks. 

28. So great was the prejudice of the 
Christians against the followers of Moham¬ 
med, that, for a long time, it was consider¬ 
ed heretical for the former to trade with 
the latter; but the Saracens having a vast 
extent of territory, and having control of 
the Mediterranean and Red Seas, as well 
as of the Persian Gulf, carried on an ex¬ 
tensive trade among themselves. 

29. The first European power which 
rose to commercial eminence, after the 
destruction of the Western Empire, was 
the republic of Venice. This important 
city owed its origin to some fugitives, who 
fled for their lives to a number of small 
islands in the Adriatic Sea, during the 
invasion of Italy by the Huns, under At- 
tila, in the year 452. 

30. The houses first built by the refu¬ 
gees, were constructed of mud and sea- 
grass; and, so insignificant were they in 
their appearance, that a writer of that pe¬ 
riod compares them to a collection of the 
nests of water-fowls. The number of these 
islands, on which so splendid a city was 
afterwards built, was, according to some, 
seventy-two; but according to others, 
ninety, or even one hundred and fifty. For 
a considerable time, the distinction of rich 
and poor was not known; for all lived 
upon the same fish-diet, and in houses of 
similar form and materials. 

31. In less than a century, the inha¬ 
bitants of these islands had established a 
regular government; and, in the year 732, 
we find them venturing beyond the Adri¬ 
atic into the Mediterranean, even as far 
as Constantinople, trading in silks, purple 
draperies, and Indian commodities. In 813, 
the French commenced trading to Alexan¬ 
dria, and, in a few years, the Venetians 









114 


THE MERCHANT. 


followed their example, in despite of the 
ecclesiastical prohibitions against inter¬ 
course with the followers of Mohammed. 
In the tenth century, Amalfi, Pisa, Genoa, 
and Florence, began to rival Venice in 
trade. 

32. The crusades, which, for two cen¬ 
turies from the year 1095, engaged so 
much of the attention of the Christian 
nations of Europe, greatly promoted the 
interests of the commercial cities of Italy; 
as the armies in these expeditions were 
dependent on them for provisions, and for 
the means of crossing the sea, which lay 
between them and the Holy Land. They 
also gave a new and powerful impulse to 
commerce in general, by giving the people, 
in the unrefined parts of Europe, a know¬ 
ledge of the elegances and luxuries of the 
East. 

33. In the thirteenth century, commerce 
and manufactures began to command con¬ 
siderable attention in Germany, and the 
adjacent states; but as the seas and rivers 
were infested with pirates, and the roads 
with banditti, it became necessary for those 
engaged in commerce to adopt measures 
to protect their commodities, while on the 
way from one place to another. The citi¬ 
zens of Hamburg and Lubeck first united 
for this purpose; and the advantages of 
such a union of strength becoming appa¬ 
rent, many other cities soon entered into 
the confederation. 

34. This association was denominated 
the Hanse , or league, and the cities thus 
united were called Hanse Towns. Most 
of the commercial towns in the northern 
parts of the continent of Europe, at length, 
became parties to the Hanseatic league. 
The number of these cities varied, at dif¬ 
ferent periods; but in the days of the 
greatest prosperity of the association, it 
amounted to eighty-five. 


35. Representatives from the different 
cities met triennially at Lubeck, where 
their common treasury and archives were 
kept. By this assembly, which was called 
a diet, rules for the regulation of com¬ 
mercial intercourse were made, and other 
business transacted, which related to the 
general welfare of the confederation. 

36. In the fourteenth century, the league, 
in all parts of Europe, attained a high 
degree of political importance, and deve¬ 
loped that commercial policy which it had 
originated, and which has since been adopt¬ 
ed by all civilized nations. The objects of 
the allied cities were now declared to be,— 
to protect their commerce against pillage; 
to guard and extend their foreign trade, 
and, as far as possible, to monopolize it; to 
maintain and extend the privileges obtain¬ 
ed from the princes of different nations; 
and to make rules or laws for the regula¬ 
tion of trade, as well as to establish the 
necessary tribunals for their due execution. 
The decisions of their courts were respect¬ 
ed by the civil authorities of the countries 
to which their trade extended. 

37. The treasury was chiefly supplied 
by duties on merchandise; and the great 
wealth thus acquired enabled the allied 
cities to obtain commercial privileges from 
needy princes, for pecuniary accommoda¬ 
tions. The league, in defending its com¬ 
merce, even carried on wars against king¬ 
doms; and, at length, by its wealth and 
naval power, became mistress of the north¬ 
ern seas, and rendered the different cities 
of the confederation in a great measure 
independent of the sovereigns of the coun¬ 
tries in which they were situated. 

38. The conduct of the Hanse T^wns, 
at length, excited the jealousies of those 
sovereigns who had, for a long time, fa¬ 
voured their union; and the princes of 
Europe generally, becoming acquainted 














THE MERCHANT. 


115 


with the value of commerce, both as means 
of enriching their people and of filling 
their own coffers, combined against the 
association. In 1518, the governments of 
several states commanded all their cities 
to withdraw from the league, which soon j 
after voluntarily excluded some others. j 
After this the Hanse gradually sunk in ! 
importance, and finally ceased to exist in ! 
1630. 

39. The trade to the East Indies con¬ 
tinued to be carried on through Persia and 
Egypt, subject to the extortions of the 
Saracens, and the still severer exactions 
of the merchants of the Italian cities, until 
the route to those countries, by the Cape 
of Good Hope, was discovered. 

40. The use of this new pathway of 
commerce, combined with the discovery 
of America, caused an entire change, both 
in the political and commercial state of 
Europe. A strong desire of visiting the 
remote parts of the world thus laid open 
to the people of Europe, immediately arose, 
not only among the Portuguese and Span¬ 
iards, but also among other nations. Colo¬ 
nies were soon planted in the East and in 
the West; and the whole world may be 
said to have been inspired with new energy. 

41. The Portuguese, being considerably 
in advance of the other Atlantic nations in 
the art of navigation, soon gained the en¬ 
tire control of the East India trade, and 
were thus raised to great eminence, pros¬ 
perity, and power. Their dominions be¬ 
came extensive in Africa and Asia, and 
their navy superior to any that had been 
seen for several ages before. 

42. In 1580, or eighty-three years after 
Vasco de Gama found his way, by the Cape, 
to Calicut, Portugal was subdued by Philip 
II. King of Spain. The Spaniards, how¬ 
ever, were not enriched by the conquest, 
since their commercial energy and enter¬ 


prise had been destroyed, by the vast 
quantities of the precious metals obtained 
from their American possessions. 

43. In 1579, the people of Holland, with 
those of six neighbouring provinces, being 
then subject to Spain, united, under the 
Prince of Orange, for the purpose of re¬ 
gaining their liberties. This produced a 
sanguinary war, which continued for thirty 
years, during which time the Dutch wrest¬ 
ed from the Spaniards most of their Portu¬ 
guese possessions in India ; and, in addition 
to this, formed many other settlements in 
various places from the river Tigris even 
to Japan. Batavia, on the Island of Java, 
was made the grand emporium of trade, 
and the seat of the government of their 
East India possessions. 

44. The prosperity of the United Pro¬ 
vinces increased with great rapidity; and, 
as they were but little interfered with by 
other nations in their eastern dominions, 
they enjoyed, for half a century or more, 
almost the whole of the trade of the East. 
Beside this, they shared largely with the 
rest of the world in almost every other 
branch of trade. After the year 1660, other 
nations, by great exertions, succeeded in 
obtaining considerable shares of the com- 
merce of the East: yet the Dutch still 
retain valuable possessions there. 

45. The chief articles exported from 
Britain, in ancient times, were tin, lead, 
copper, iron, wool, and cattle; for which 
they received in return, gold, silver, and 
manufactured articles: but the commerce 
of the British Islands was inconsiderable, 
when compared with that of many king¬ 
doms on the continent, until the beginning 
of the eighteenth century. 

46. When Elizabeth ascended the throne 
of England, in 1558, the circumstances of 
the nation required an extensive navy for 
its protection; and the great attention 











116 


fHE MERCHANT. 


which the queen paid to this means of 
defence, gave animation to all maritime 
concerns. Under her patronage, several 
companies for trading in foreign countries 
were formed, which, at that time, and for 
a long period afterwards, were very bene¬ 
ficial to trade in general. In her reign, 
also, the colonial system of England had 
its origin, which contributed eventually, 
more than any thing else, to the commer¬ 
cial prosperity of that nation. Since the 
reign of this wise and judicious princess, 
the commerce and manufactures of Great 
Britain have been, with a few interruptions, 
steadily advancing; and, in these two par¬ 
ticulars, she surpasses every other nation. 

47. The United States possess superior 
local advantages for trade, and embrace a 
population unsurpassed for enterprise and 
energy. Since the Revolution, the re¬ 
sources of our country have been rapidly 
developing. Our exports and imports are 
already next in amounttothose ofGreatBri- 
tainand France; and the extensive improve¬ 
ments which have been made by the differ¬ 
ent states, to facilitate internal intercourse, 
are increasing them with great rapidity. 

48. The banking system is very inti¬ 
mately interwoven with commercial affairs 
in general. Banks are of three kinds, viz. 
of discount , of deposit , and of circulation. 
The term bank , in its original application, 
signified a place of common deposit for 
money, and where, in commercial transac¬ 
tions, individuals could have the amount, 
or any part of the amount, of their deposits 
transferred to each other’s accounts. 

49. The term bank is derived from the 
Italian word banco , which signified a kind 
of bench, or table, on which the Jews were 
accustomed to place the money that they 
proposed to lend in the markets of the 
principal towns. The first bank was es¬ 
tablished in Venice, about the middle of 


the twelfth century; the Bank of Genoa, 
in 1345; the Bank of Amsterdam, in 1607; 
the Bank of Hamburg, in 1619; the Bank 
of Rotterdam, in 1635. These were all 
banks of mere deposit and transfer. 

50. Lending houses may be traced to a 
very ancient origin. They w r ere, at first, 
supported by humane persons, with a view 
of lending money to the poor, on pledges, 
without interest. Augustus Csesar appro¬ 
priated a part of the confiscated effects of 
criminals to this purpose; and Tiberias, 
also, advanced a large capital, to be lent 
for three years, without interest, to those 
who could give security in lands equal to 
twice the value of the sum borrowed. 

51. In the early ages of Christianity, 
free gifts were collected and preserved by 
ecclesiastics, partly to defray the expenses 
of divine service, and partly to relieve the 
poor of the church; and the funds thus 
provided came, at length, to be called 
montespietatis, —mountains of piety. This 
appellation was afterwards applied to the 
loaning houses, established in modern Italy 
in imitation of those of antiquity. 

52. In course of time, the loaning houses 
were permitted by the Roman Pontiff to 
charge a moderate interest on a part of 
their capital, and, finally, upon the whole 
of it; still, they retained, for a long period, 
the original denomination of montes pie¬ 
tatis. The receiving of interest on loans 
was declared lawful by the Pope, about 
the middle of the fifteenth century. Soon 
after this period, all the cities of Italy has¬ 
tened to establish these institutions; and 
their example was, at length, followed in 
other parts of Europe. 

53. But long before the Pope had granted 
this privilege, individuals were in the habit 
of loaning money at an exorbitant usury. 
These were principally Jews and mer¬ 
chants from Lombardy; hence, all persons 








THE MERCHANT. 


117 


in those countries, who dealt in money, 
came to be called Lombard merchants. 
The prohibitions of the church against 
receiving interest were eluded, when ne¬ 
cessary, by causing it to be paid in ad¬ 
vance, by way of present or premium. 

54. In the twelfth century, many of the 
dealers in money were expelled from Eng¬ 
land, France, and the Netherlands, for j 
usurious practices; and, in order to regain I 
possession of their effects, which they had, 
m their haste, left in the hands of confi¬ 
dential friends, they adopted the method 
of writing concise orders or drafts: hence 
originated bills of exchange, so convenient 
in commercial transactions. 

55. The Bank of England was establish¬ 
ed in the year 1694. Hitherto, the banks 
of deposit, and loaning houses, were en¬ 
tirely distinct; but, in this institution, 
these two branches of pecuniary opera¬ 
tions were united. It seems, also, that 
this was the first bank that issued notes, to 
serve as a medium of circulation, and to 
supply, in part, the place of gold and silver. 

56. In the United States, banking insti¬ 
tutions are very numerous. They are all 
established by companies, incorporated by 
the legislatures of the different states, or 
by the congress of the United States. 
The act which grants the privileges of 
banking, also fixes the amount of the capi¬ 
tal stock, and divides it into equal shares. 
The holders of the stock choose the officers 
to transact the business of the corporation. 

57. Our banks receive deposits from indi¬ 


vidual customers; loan money on notes of 
hand, acceptances, and drafts; issue notes 
of circulation; and purchase and sell bills 
of exchange. They are usually authorized, 
by their charters, to loan three times the 
amount, and to issue bank notes to twice 
the amount, of the capital stock paid in. 
Few banking companies, however, exer¬ 
cise these privileges to the full extent, lest 
the bank be embarrassed by too great a 
demand for specie. As soon as a bank 
ceases to pay specie for its notes, it is said 
to be broken, and its operations must cease. 

58. The Bank of North America was 
the first institution of this kind, established 
in the United States. It was incorporated 
by Congress, in 1781, at the suggestion of 
Robert Morris. In 1791, after the union of 
the states had been effected under the pre¬ 
sent constitution, the first Bank of the 
United States was incorporated, with a 
capital of ten millions of dollars. Most of 
the states soon followed this example; and, 
before the beginning of the present cen¬ 
tury, the whole banking capital amounted 
to near thirty millions of dollars. 

59. The charter of the first Bank of the 
United States expired, by its own limita¬ 
tion, in 1811; and a new one, with a capi¬ 
tal of thirty-five millions of dollars, was 
established in 1816. The number of banks 
now in successful operation, in this coun¬ 
try, including that of the United States, 
with its various branches, is about 625; 
and the sum of the whole banking capital, 
is not far from $220,000,000. 









1. The Auctioneer is one who disposes 
of property at public sale, to the highest 
bidder. The sale of property in this man¬ 
ner, is regulated, in some particulars, by 
legislative enactments, which have for 
their object the prevention of fraud, or 
the imposition of duties. 

2. In Pennsylvania, the present law’ pro¬ 
vides for three classes of auctioneers, each 
of which is required to pay to the state a 
specified sum fora license. The first class 
pays two thousand dollars per annum; the 
second, one thousand ; and the third, two 
hundred; and, besides this, one and a half 
per cent, on the amount of all their sales 
is required to be paid into the treasury of 
the state. To each class are granted pri¬ 
vileges corresponding to the cost of the 
license. 


8. In the state of New-York, the num¬ 
ber of auctioneers for the cities is limited 
by law; and they are appointed by the 
Governor, with the advice and consent of 
the Senate. They pay to the state a duty 
of one per cent, on all foreign goods or 
merchandise. The laws and usages re¬ 
garding sales at auction, in most of the 
United States, are similar, in their general 
principles, to those of Pennsylvania and 
New-York. 

4. A great amount of merchandise, both 
foreign and domestic, in our principal cities, 
is sold by auction; and the price which 
staple commodities there command i? jrt*au¬ 
rally considered a tolerable criterion of 
their value at the time. It very frequently 
happens, however, that articles which are 
not in steady demand, are sold at a great 


















































































































































THE AUCTIONEER. 


119 


sacrifice. Auctioneers seldom import goods, 
nor is it usual for them to own the property 
which they sell. 

5. In all cases, before an auction is held, 
lue notice is given to the public. 'This is 
usually done by the circulation of a printed 
hand-bill, by a crier, or by an advertise¬ 
ment in a newspaper; or all three of these 
modes may be employed, to give publicity 
to one and the same sale. 

6. Persons desirous of becoming pur¬ 
chasers at the proposed auction, assemble 
at the time appointed; and, after the auc¬ 
tioneer has stated the terms of sale, as 
regards the payment of whatever may be 
purchased, he offers the property to the 
persons present, who make their respective 
bids; he, in the meantime, crying the sum 
proposed: when no further advance is ex¬ 
pected, he knocks down the article to the 
last bidder. 

7. A mode of sale was formerly, and in 
some cases is still, practised, in various 
parts of Europe, called sale by inch of can¬ 
dle. The things for sale are offered in the 
ordinary manner, as has been described in 
the preceding paragraph, and, at the same 
time, a wax-candle, an inch in length, is 
lighted. The purchasers bid upon each 
other, until the candle has been all con¬ 
sumed ; and the last bidder, when the light 
goes out, is entitled to the articles or goods 
in question. 

8. Auctioneers, in large cities, hold their 
sales at regular periods; sometimes, every 
day or evening. On extensive sales of 
merchandise, credits of two, three, four, 
six, or nine months, are commonly given. 
In such cases, the auctioneer gives his own 
obligations for the goods, and receives in 
return those of the purchasers. 


9. This mode of sale is employed in the 
disposition of property taken by process of 
law, for the payment of debts, in every 
part of the world, where the influence of 
European law has extended. It is used in 
preference to any other, because it is the 
most ready way of sale, and is moreover 
the most likely method to secure to the 
debtor something like the value of his pro¬ 
perty. 

10. Executors and administrators often 
employ this convenient method of sale, in 
settling the estates of deceased persons; 
and they, as well as sheriffs and consta¬ 
bles, ex-officio, or by virtue of their office, 
have a lawful right to act in the capacity 
of auctioneer, in performing their respective 
duties; and no tax is required by the state, 
in such cases. 

11. The sale by auction was in use 
among the Romans, even in the early days 
of their city. It was first employed in the 
disposition of spoils taken in war; hence 
a spear was adopted as a signal of a public 
sale; and this continued to be the auction¬ 
eer’s emblem, even after this mode of sale 
was extended to property in general. The 
red flag and spear, or rather the handle of 
that instrument, both emblematical of blood 
and war, are still employed for the same 
purpose. 

12. Several attempts have been made 
in the United States, to suppress sales of 
merchandise at auction; but these endea¬ 
vours were unsuccessful, since experience 
had proved this mode of effecting exchanges 
to be prompt and convenient; and since 
some of the states derived considerable 
revenue from the duties. So long as con¬ 
flicting interests remain as they are, this 
mode of sale will be likely to continue. 











THE CLERGYMAN. 


1. The Lord Jesus Christ, our Saviour, 
during his visit of mercy to the world, 
chose from among his disciples twelve 
men, to be his especial agents in establish¬ 
ing his church. These men, in our trans¬ 
lation of the New Testament, are deno¬ 
minated apostles. The grand commission 
which they received was, “ Go ye into all 
the world, and preach my gospel to every 
creature.” 

2. The apostles commenced their noble 
enterprise on that memorable day of Pen¬ 
tecost, which next occurred after the as¬ 
cension of their master; and, in the city i 
of his inveterate enemies, soon succeeded 
in establishing a church of several thou¬ 
sand members. The doctrines of Chris¬ 
tianity soon spread to other cities and coun¬ 
tries ; and, before the close of that cen¬ 


tury, they were known and embraced, 
more or less, in every province of the 
Roman empire. 

3. The apostles, however, were not the 
only agents engaged in spreading and 
maintaining the doctrines of Christianity; 
for, in every church, persons were found 
capable of taking the supervision of the 
rest, and of exercising the office of the 
ministry. These were ordained, either by 
the apostles themselves, or by persons au¬ 
thorized by them to perform the ceremony. 

4. After the church had passed through 
a great variety of persecutions, during a 
period of nearly three centuries the Chris¬ 
tians became superior in numbers to the 
pagav.s in the Roman empire. In the 
early part of the fourth century, a free 
toleration, in religious matters, was de- 
































































































































THE CLERGYMAN 


121 


dared by Constantine the Great, who took 
the church under his especial protection. 

5. The Christians of the first and second 
centuries usually worshipped God in pri¬ 
vate houses, or in the open air, in retired 
places, chiefly on account of the persecu¬ 
tions to which they were often subjected. 
It was not until the third century, that 
they ventured to give greater publicity to 
their service, by building churches for 
general accommodation. When the Cross 
had obtained the ascendency, in the subse¬ 
quent age, many of the heathen temples 
were appropriated to Christian purposes, 
and many splendid churches were erected, 
especially by Constantine and his suc¬ 
cessors. 

6. In the middle ages, a great number 
of edifices were erected for the perform¬ 
ance of divine worship, which, in loftiness 
and grandeur, had never been surpassed; 
and the greater part of these remain to the 
present day. Some of the most famous 
churches are, St. Peter’s, at Rome; Notre 
Dame, at Paris; St. Stephen’s, at Vienna; 
the church of Isaac, at St. Petersburg; the 
minsters at Strasburg and Cologne; and 
St. Paul’s, in London. 

7. Up to the time of the great change 
in favour of Christianity, just mentioned, 
the whole church had often acted together 
in matters of common interest, through the 
medium of general councils; and this prac¬ 
tice continued for several centuries after¬ 
wards. But the variance and dissensions 
between the Pope of Rome and the Pa¬ 
triarch of Constantinople, combined with 
some other causes, produced, about the 
close of the ninth century, a total separation 
of the two great divisions ot the church. 

8. At the time of this division, the whole 
Christian world had become subject to 
these two prelates. The part of the church 
ruled by the Patriarch, was called the East- 

16 


ern , or Greek Church; and that part which 
yielded obedience to the Pope, was dene 
minated the Western , or Latin Church. 
Many attempts have been since made to 
reunite these two branches of the church; 
but these endeavours have hitherto proved 
unsuccessful. 

9. The conquest of the Roman Empire, 
so often mentioned in the preceding pages, 
was particularly injurious to the church, 
especially that part of it subject to the 
Roman Pontiff; since it nearly extinguish¬ 
ed the arts and sciences, and since the bar¬ 
barous conquerors were received into the 
church, before they had attained the proper 
moral qualifications. Prom these causes, 
chiefly, arose the conduct, of the church, 
in the middle ages, which has been so 
much censured by all enlightened men, 
and which has been often unjustly at¬ 
tributed to Christianity herself, rather than 
to the ignorance and barbarism of the 
times. 

10. In the year 1517, while Leo X. oc¬ 
cupied the papal chair, Martin Luther, of 
Saxony, commenced his well-known oppo- 
position to many practices and doctrines in 
the church, which he conceived to be de¬ 
partures from the spirit of primitive Chris¬ 
tianity. He was soon joined in his opposi¬ 
tion by Philip Melancthon, Ulric Zuingle, 
aftd finally by John Calvin, as well as by 
many other distinguished divines of that 
century, in various parts of Europe. 

11 . Those men, with their followers and 
abettors, for reasons too obvious to need 
explanation, received or assumed the ap¬ 
pellation of Reformers; and, on account 
of a solemn protest which they entered 
against a certain decree which had been 
issued against them, they also became dis¬ 
tinguished by the name of Protestants. 
The latter term is now applied to all sects, 
of whatever denomination, in the western 

L 











122 


THE CLERGYMAN. 


division of the church, that do not acknow¬ 
ledge the authority of the Roman See. 

12. The Protestant division of the church 
is called by the Roman Catholics, the West¬ 
ern Schism , to distinguish it from that of 
the Greek church, which is termed the 
Eastern Schism. The Protestants are di¬ 
vided into a great number of sects, or par¬ 
ties; and, although they differ from each 
other in many of their religious sentiments, 
they agree in their steady opposition to the 
Roman Catholics. 

13. The ostensible object of the founders 
of all the churches differing from the 
Romish communion, has been, to bring 
back Christianity to the state in which it 
existed on its first establishment; and to 
prove their positions in doctrine and church 
government, they appeal to the scriptures, 
and sometimes to the Christian writers of 
the first four or five centuries. The advo¬ 
cates of the “ mother church,” on the con¬ 
trary, contend that, being infallible, she 
can never have departed from primitive 
principles, on any point essential to salva¬ 
tion. 

14. As to the government of the several 
churches, it is, in most cases, either Epis¬ 
copal or Presbyterian. In the former cas«, 
three orders of clergymen are recognized; 
viz. bishops, presbyters, and deacons; and 
these three orders are supposed, by the 
advocates of episcopacy, to have been 
ordained by the apostles. This opinion i« 
supported by the circumstance, that theta 
orders are mentioned in the scriptures; 
and also by the fact, gathered from Chris¬ 
tian writers, that they were uniformly 
established early in the second century. 

15. It is supposed, that these three orders 
of ministers were instituted in the Chris¬ 
tian church, in imitation of the Jewish 
priesthood: the bishop representing the 


high-priest; the presbyters, the priests; 
and the deacons, the Levites. 

16. On the other hand, the advocates of 
the Presbyterian form of government, as¬ 
sert, that in the first century of the church, 
bishop and prewbytw were the same order 
of ministers, and that the former was 
nothing more than a p*o*byter, who pre¬ 
sided in Christian assemblies, when met to 
consult on ckurch affail's. 

17. The doaoons in the churches that 
have renounced episcopacy, are not classed 
among the clergy, but are chosen from 
among the private members, to manage 
tho temporalities of the congregation, or 
church, to which they belong; to assist the 
minister, on some occasions, in religious 
assemblies; or to take the lead in religious 
worship, in his absence. In this form of 
government, therefore, there is but one 
order of clergymen; and this is denomi¬ 
nated presbyter, priest, or elder. 

18. Tha literary and religious qualifica¬ 
tions required of candidates for orders have 
varied in different ages of the church, ac¬ 
cording to the existing state of literature 
and religiifi; and the requirements in 
these two particulars are now different, in 
the several denominations. Nearly all, 
however, require the profession in the can¬ 
didate, that he believes he is moved by the 
Holy Ghost to take upon him the office of 
the ministry. Some churches require a 
collegiate education, with two or three 
years of the study of divinity; but others, 
only such as is usually obtained in common 
schools, combined with a tolerable capacity 
for public speaking. 

19. The clergy in the Roman Catholic 
church, is of two kinds; the one regular, 
comprehending all the religious of both 
sexes, who have taken upon themselves 
monastic vows the other secular, com- 







THE CLERGYMAN. 


123 


prehending all the ecclesiastics who do not 
assume these obligations. The latter, how¬ 
ever, in common with the former, take a 
vow of perpetual celibacy. 

20. It is the especial duty of clergymen, 
to preach the gospel; to administer the 
ordinances; and to enforce the discipline 
of that branch of the church to which they 
belong. They are also expected to ad¬ 
minister consolation to persons in distress 
of mind, arising from the complicated evils 
of this life; to unite persons by the bonds 
of matrimony; and finally, in attending on 
the burial of the dead, to perform the last 
ceremonv due from man to man. 

21. Ministers of the gospel occupy an 
elevated stand in all Christian communi¬ 
ties, both on account of the high tone of 
moral feeling which they generally pos¬ 
sess, and on account of the interest which 
the people at large feel in the subject of 
religion. The work of the ministry is em¬ 
phatically a work of benevolence; and no 
man can perform it with satisfaction to 
himself, or with acceptance to the people 
of his charge, if destitute of love to God 
and man. 

22. In most of the kingdoms of Europe, 
some one of the several denominations is 
supported by legal enactments; but in the 
United States, every branch of the church 
enjoys equal favour, so far as legislation is 


concerned. In most cases, the institutions 
of religion are supported by voluntary con¬ 
tributions or subscriptions. 

23. The salary received by ministers ol 
the gospel, in the United States, is exceed¬ 
ingly various in the different denomina¬ 
tions, and in the same denomination from 
different congregations. In some instances, 
they receive nothing for their services; in 
others, a liberal compensation. 

24. It is but justice to this profession to 
remark, that, taking the ability of its mem¬ 
bers into account, there is no employment 
less productive of wealth ; and this is so 
evidently the case, that some denomina¬ 
tions distribute, annually, a considerable 
amount among the widows and orphans of 
those who have devoted their lives to the 
ministry. 

25. The meagre support which the mi- • 
nistry usually receives, arises, in part, from 
the opinion too commonly entertained, that 
this profession ought to be one of benevo¬ 
lence exclusively, and thatTministers should, 
therefore, be contented with a bare subsist¬ 
ence, and look for their reward in the con¬ 
sciousness of doing their duty, and in the 
prospect of future felicity. This is a very 
convenient way of paying for the services 
of faithful servants, and of relieving the 
consciences of those whose duty it is to 
give them a liberal support. 





1. Attorney at law, and lawyer, are 
synonymous terms, both being applicable 
to those individuals who transact business 
of a legal nature for others, who, in this 
relation, are called clients. Before a per¬ 
son is permitted to practise law in our 
courts, he is required to pass through a 
regular course of study, and afterwards 
undergo an examination before persons 
learned in the law. 

2. This profession has its foundation in 
the numerous and complicated laws which 
have been adopted by men, to govern their 
intercourse with each other. These laws, 
as they exist in our country, may be divided 
into constitutional and municipal. Con¬ 
stitutional law is that by which the govern¬ 
ments of the United States, and of the dif¬ 
ferent states, have been established, and 


by which they are governed in their ac¬ 
tion. The constitution of the United 
States is the supreme law of the land. 

3. Municipal law embraces those rules 
of civil conduct prescribed by the supreme 
power of the state, or of the nation; and 
is composed of statute and common law. 
Statute law is the express will of the 
legislative part of the government, render¬ 
ed authentic by certain forms and solemni¬ 
ties, prescribed by the constitution. 

4. Common law is a system of rules and 
usages, which have been applied in par¬ 
ticular cases of litigation. It originated 
in the dictates of natural justice, and cul- 

! tivated reason; and is found more particu¬ 
larly in the reports of the decisions of the 
courts of justice. The common law is 
j employed, in most cases, to aid in ihe 





















































































































































ATTORNEY AT LAW 


125 


construction and definite application of 
statute law, or positive enactments of the 
legislature. The common law of England 
has been adopted by every state in the 
Union, except Louisiana. 

5. The constitution of the United States, 
and of the several states, provides for three 
departments of the respective governments, 
viz. the legislative, the executive, and the 
judicial. It is the chief province of the 
first to enact laws, and of the second and 
third to see that they are duly executed. 

6. The judicial power of the United 
States is vested in one supreme court and 
two inferior courts. The supreme court 
is now composed of seven justices, who 
commence their session in the Capitol, at 
Washington, on the second Monday in 
January. The two inferior courts are the 
district and circuit courts: in the first of 
these presides a single judge; in the se¬ 
cond, one of the justices of the supreme 
court, and the district judge. 

7. The judiciary of the United States 
takes cognisance of all cases which arise 
under the constitution, laws, and tieaties, 
of the United States, and likewise of those 
cases arising under the law of nations. It 
also embraces all cases of admiralty and 
maritime jurisdiction, as well as those con- j 
troversies to which the government of j 
the United States is a party; the contro- 
versies between two states; between a 
state and citizens of another state; be¬ 
tween citizens of different states; and be¬ 
tween a state or citizens thereof, and foreign 
states, citizens, or subjects. 

8. The judicial Systems of all the states 
correspond, in many respects, with each 
other. In all, the office of justice of the 
peace is similar. To these magistrates, j 
the general police of the counties is chiefly 
committed, as they have authority to cause 
criminals, and other disturbers of the peace, 


to be arrested; and, if the offence is small, 
to fix the penalty ; but if the offence is too 
great to be brought within their jurisdic¬ 
tion, they commit the offenders to prison, 
to be reserved for trial before the proper 
tribunal. 

9. In many of the states, the common 
magistrates of the county, or a select num¬ 
ber of them, form a court, called county 
sessions, which has a comprehensive juris¬ 
diction in matters of police, and in regu¬ 
lating the affairs of the county; such as 
building court-houses, assessing county 
taxes, opening roads, and licensing taverns. 

10. In Virginia, the county sessions is 
an important court: its jurisdiction extends 
to many criminal cases, and to those of a 
civil nature involving the amount of $300. 
Although a great amount of business passes 
through these courts, the justices discharge 
all their duties without compensation. In 
most of the states, the common magis¬ 
trates, in their individual or collective 
capacity, have jurisdiction over civil cases, 
varying in their greatest amount from thir¬ 
teen to one hundred dollars; a right of 
appeal being reserved to a higher court. 

11. No definite qualifications are re¬ 
quired, by law or usage, for practising in 
the magistrates’ courts: accordingly, there 
are many persons who plead causes here, 
who do not properly belong to the profes¬ 
sion of law; these are called pettifoggers , 
and the practice itself, by whomsoever per¬ 
formed, is called pettifogging. Lawyers 
of inferior abilities and acquirements are, 
also, frequently termed pettifoggers. 

12. In all the states, a class of county 
courts is established, denominated courts 
of common pleas, county courts, district 
or circuit courts, which have original ju¬ 
risdiction of civil actions at law, or indict¬ 
ments for crimes. Over these are estab¬ 
lished the superior or supreme courts, or 

L 2 














126 


ATTORNEY AT LAW. 


courts of error and appeal; to which ap¬ 
peals are admitted from the inferior courts. 

13. Civil cases are frequently decided 
on principles of equity; and in some states, 
courts of chancery are established for this 
purpose: but in most of the states, there 
are no decisions of this kind, or the same 
courts act as courts of law and equity, as 
is the case with the courts of the United 
States. 

14. There arc several other courts that 
might be mentioned; but enough has been 
said of these institutions, to give an idea of 
the extensive range of the profession of the 
law. It may be well to remark here, that 
few lawyers aspire to the privilege of prac¬ 
tising in the supreme courts; since, to be 
successful there, it would require not only 
great abilities, but more extensive reading 
than the profession generally are willing 
to encounter. 

15. When a client has stated his case 
in detail to his attorney, it is the province 
of the latter to decide upon the course 
most proper to be pursued, in regard to it. 
If the client is the plaintiff, and litigation 
is determined upon, the attorney decides 
upon the court in which the case should 
be brought forward, and also upon the 
manner in which it should be conducted. 

16. The suit having been brought, say 
into t-he county court, it is tried according 
to law. If it involve facts or damages, it 
is canvassed before a jury of twelve men, 
who are bound by oath or affirmation to 
bring in their verdict according to the evi¬ 
dence presented by both parties. It is the 
business of the lawyers, each for his own 
client, to sum up the evidence which may 
have been adduced, and to present the 
whole in a light as favourable to his own 
side of the question as possible. 

17. When the case involves points of 
'aw which must needs be understood by ! 


the jury, to enable them to make a correct 
decision, the advocates of the parties pre¬ 
sent their views with regard to them; but 
if these happen to be wrong, the judge, in 
his charge to the jury, rectifies the mis- 
j take or misrepresentation. The case having 
been decided, each party is bound to submit 
to the decision, or appeal, if permitted by 
law, to a higher tribunal. 

18. Causes to be determined on legal prin- 
; ciples only, are brought before the judge 

or judges for adjudication. In such cases, 
the advocates present the statute supposed 
to be applicable, and then reports of similar 
cases, which may have been formerly de¬ 
cided in the same or similar courts. These 
reports constitute the common law of the 
case, and are supposed, in most instances, 
to furnish a correct interpretation of the 
meaning of the statute. 

19. Besides the management of causes 
in public courts, the lawyer has a great 
mass of business of a private nature; such 
as drawing wills, indentures, deeds, and 
mortgages. He is consulted in a great 
variety of cases of a legal nature, when 
litigation is not immediately concerned, 
and especially in regard to the validity of 
titles to real estate; and the many imposi¬ 
tions to which the community is liable 
from defective titles, render the information 
which he is able to afford on this subject 
extremely valuable. 

20. Tn the preceding account of this 
profession, it is easy to perceive that it is 
one of great utility and responsibility. It 
is to the attorney, that the oppressed re¬ 
pair for redress against the oppressor; and 
to him, the orphan and friendless look, to 
aid them in obtaining or maintaining their 
rights. To this profession, also, as much 
as to any other, the American people may 
confidently look for the maintenance of 

I correct political principles. 















THE PHYSICIAN. 


1. / wong the various avocations of men, 
chat o* the physician deserves to be placed 
in the foremost rank. The profession is 
founded in the multiplicity of diseases to 
which humanity is liable, and in the medi¬ 
cal qualities of certain substances, which 
have been found to supply a remedy. 

2. It is implied, though not expressly de¬ 
clared, in the scriptures, that the diseases 
and other calamities pertaining to our 
earthly condition, originated in the fall of 
man from his pristine innocence; and the 
Grecian fable of Pandora’s box appears to 
have originated in a similar tradition. It 
seems that Jupiter, being angry at Pro¬ 
metheus, ordered Vulcan to make a woman 
endowed with every possible perfection. 
This workman having finished his task, 
and presented the workmanship of his 


hands to the gods, they loaded her with 
presents, and sent her to Prometheus. 

3. This prince, however, suspecting a 
trick, would have nothing to do with her; 
but Epimetheus was so captivated with 
her charms, that he took her to be his wife. 
The curiosity of Epimetheus, too, led him 
to look into the fatal box, which he had no 
sooner opened, than there issued from it 
the complicated miseries and diseases, 
which have since afflicted the family of 
man. He instantly shut the box; but all 
had flown, save Hope, which had not time 
to escape; and this is consequently the 
only blessing that permanently remains 
with wretched mortals. 

4. Since the introduction of moral evil 
into the world, it cannot be supposed that 
man has ever enjoyed the blessing of 














































































































































128 


THE PHYSICIAN. 


uninterrupted health; and, as it is an in¬ 
stinct of our nature to seek for means of 
relieving’ pain, we may safely infer that 
medicinal remedies were applied, in the 
earliest ages of the human race. 

5. Among some of the ancient nations, 
the origin of diseases was attributed to the 
malignant influence of supernatural agents. 
This notion produced a corresponding ab¬ 
surdity, in the means of obtaining relief; 
accordingly, idolatrous priests, astrologers, 
and magicians, were resorted to; and they, 
in turn, employed religious ceremonies, 
astrological calculations, and cabalistic in¬ 
cantations. 

6. The healing art was cultivated at a 
very early period in Egypt; but it was 
crippled in its infancy by ordinances, en¬ 
joining, without discrimination, the reme¬ 
dies for every disease, and the precise time 
and mode of their application. The prac¬ 
tice was confined to the priests, who con¬ 
nected with it the grossest superstitions. 

7. We are informed by the most ancient 
historians, that the Chaldeans and Baby¬ 
lonians exposed their sick in places of 
public resort, and on the highways; and 
that strangers and others were required, 
bv law, to give some advice in each case 
of disease. Amid the variety of sugges¬ 
tions which must necessarily have been 
given under such circumstances, it was 
expected that some would prove efficacious. 
This custom was well calculated to en¬ 
large the boundaries of medical knowledge. 

8. The first records of medicine were 
kept in the temples dedicated by the 
Greeks to Esculapius, who, on account of 
his skill in medicine, was honoured as the 
god of health. The name or description 
of the disease, and the method of cure, 
were engraved on durable tablets, which 
were suspended where they could be rea¬ 
dily seen by visiters. 


9. But medicine did not assume the dig¬ 
nity of a distinct science, until the days 
of Hippocrates, who reckons himself the 
seventeenth from Esculapius in a lineal 
descent. This great man, who flourished 
about 400 years before the Christian era, 
is universally esteemed the “Father of 
Medicine.” After his death, the science 
was cultivated by the philosophers of 
Greece; to whom, however, it owes but 
few improvements. 

10. After the dismemberment of the 
Macedonian empire, learning retreated 
from contending factions to Egypt, \vhere 
it was liberally fostered by the Ptolemies. 
Under their patronage, a medical school at 
Alexandria became eminent, and the heal¬ 
ing art flourished beyond all former exam¬ 
ple. To the disciples of this school, is the 
world indebted for the first correct descrip¬ 
tion of the human structure. Their know¬ 
ledge on this subject was obtained from 
the dissection of the bodies of criminals, 
which had been assigned to them by the 
government. 

11. The acquisitions of the Greeks in 
medical science at length became the in¬ 
heritance of the Romans; but Rome had 
existed 535 years before a professional 
physician was known in the city. This 
inattention to the subject of medicine 
arose, chiefly, from an opinion common to 
the semi-barbarous nations of those times, 
that maladies were to be cured by the in¬ 
terposition of superior beings. The sick, 
therefore, applied to their idolatrous priests, 
who offered sacrifices to the gods in their 
behalf, and practised over the body of the 
patient a variety of magical ceremonies. 

12. Sacrifices were especially offered 
to the gods in cases of pestilence; and, on 
one occasion of this kind, a temple waa 
erected to Apollo, who was regarded as the 
god of physic; and, on another, Esculapius, 











THE PHYSICIAN. 


129 


under the form of a serpent, was conducted 
from Epidaurus, in Greece, and introduced, 
with great pomp, upon an islet in the Tiber, 
which was thenceforth devoted to his par¬ 
ticular service. 

13. Archagathus, a Greek, was the first 
who practised physic, as an art, at Rome; 
and he was soon followed by many more of 
his professional brethren. These pioneers 
of medicine, however, were violently op¬ 
posed by Cato the Censor, who publicly 
charged them with a conspiracy to poison 
the citizens. But the patients under their 
care generally recovering, he began to 
regard them as impious sorcerers, who 
counteracted the course of nature, and 
restored men to life by means of unholy 
charms. 

14. Cato having succeeded in producing 
a general conviction, that the practice of 
these physicians was calculated to ener¬ 
vate the constitutions, and corrupt the man¬ 
ners of the people, restrictions were laid 
upon the profession, and practitioners were 
even forbidden to settle at Rome. But 
afler the people had become more vicious 
and luxurious, diseases became more fre¬ 
quent and obstinate, and physicians more 
necessary. The restrictions were, there¬ 
fore, at length removed. 

15. Among the Roman writers on medi¬ 
cine, Celsus was the first who is worthy of 
consideration. He has been denominated 
the Roman Hippocrates, because he imi¬ 
tated the close observation and practice 
of that physician. His work, as well as 
that of his great prototype, is read with 
advantage, even at the present day. He 
flourished at, or near, the time of our Sa¬ 
viour. 

16. In the second century of the Christian 
era, Galen, a Greek physician from Perga- 
mus, and a disciple of the Alexandrian 
school, settled in Rome. He was learned 

17 


in all branches of medicine, and wrote more 
copiously on the subject generally, than any 
other person amongst the ancients. For 
1300 years, his opinions were received as 
oracular, wherever medicine was cultj- 
vated. 

17. After the destruction of the Western 
Empire by the barbarous nations, the sci¬ 
ence of medicine was cultivated only in 
the Greek empire, and chiefly at Alexan¬ 
dria, until it began to arrest the attention 
of the Arabians, in the seventh century. 
The works of several Greek philosophers 
and physicians were translated into Ara¬ 
bic, under the patronage of the caliphs; 
several of whom were zealous promoters 
of learning. 

18. In the eighth century, the caliph 
Almansur established, at Bagdad, a hospi¬ 
tal for the sick, and an academy; in the 
latter of which, among other branches of 
knowledge, was taught the medical ar>. 
But it was in Spain, that Arabian learning 
rose to the highest point, and produced the 
most successful results. The university 
of Cordova became the most celebrated in 
the world, and continued to maintain its 
reputation for a long series of years. Ara¬ 
bian medicine reached its greatest emi¬ 
nence, in the eleventh century. 

19. In the tenth century, this science 
began to be taught in the schools of other 
parts of Europe; but its professors derived 
their knowledge of the subject from the 
Arabian school, or from Arabic translations 
of the ancient authors; and this continued 
to be the case until the conquest of Con¬ 
stantinople by the Turks, in 1453. At this 
time, many erudite Greeks fled into Italy, 
and carried with them the ancient writings. 

20. Before the general revival of this 
science in Europe, the cure of diseases 
was chiefly confided, in the western na¬ 
tions of Europe, to the priests and monks, 





130 


THE PHYSICIAN. 


who, however, generally relied more upon 
religious ceremonies, and the influence of 
sacred relics, than upon the application of 
medical remedies. The superstitions of 
tnose barbarous times, respecting the means 
of curing diseases, have not yet entirely 
disappeared, even from the most enlighten¬ 
ed nations of Christendom. 

21. The science of chemistry began to 
attract much attention about the beginning 
of the sixteenth century; and the many 
powerful medical agents which it supplied, 
at length produced a great change in the 
theory and practice of medicine. Many 
valuable medicines of the vegetable kind, 
were also obtained from America. The 
discovery of the circulation of the blood 
by William Harvey, in 1620, imparted a 
new impulse to medicine; but, like che¬ 
mistry, it gave rise to many absurd and 
hurtful theories. 

22. Researches in different branches of 
medicine were continued with ardour in 
the seventeenth century, in various parts 
of Europe; and numerous discoveries of 
importance were made, especially in anato¬ 
my. Many theories regarding the origin 
of diseases, and their treatment, were pro¬ 
posed, advocated, and controverted; but 
all these were overthrown by Stahl, Boer- 
haave, and Hoffman, three eminent theo¬ 
rists, in the early part of the eighteenth 
century. 

23. These distinguished men were fol¬ 
lowed by others of equal celebrity, in the 
same century, who, in part at least, ex¬ 
ploded the doctrines of their predecessors. 
The present century, above all other pe¬ 
riods, is remarkable for men eminent in 
this profession; and, although all do not 
exactly agree in opinion, yet, guided in 
their conclusions by a careful observation 
ot facts, they are less under the influence 


of visionary theories than physicians of 
former times. Besides, many of the sub¬ 
jects of former controversy having been 
satisfactorily settled, there are now fewer 
causes of division and excitement among 
the medical profession. 

24. Medical science comprises several 
branches, of which the following are the 
principal; viz. Anatomy, Surgery, Materia 
Medica, Chemistry, the Theory and Prac¬ 
tice of Physic. On these subjects, lectures 
are <riven in several collesres and univer- 
sities in Europe, and in the United States. 
In this country, an attendance on two re¬ 
gular courses of lectures entitles the stu¬ 
dent to the degree of Doctor of Medicine, 
provided he can sustain with sufficient 
ability, an examination before the profes¬ 
sors, or, as they are usually termed, the 
medical faculty. 

25. The degree of M. D. conferred by 
a college or university, is a passport to 
practice, in every state of the Union; and, 
in some states, none are permitted to attend 
the sick, professionally, without having first 
obtained a diploma conferring such degree. 
In other states, however, no legal restric¬ 
tions are imposed on the practitioners of 
the healing art; or, they are licensed by a 
board of physicians, constituted by law for 
the purpose. 

26. The practice of this profession is 
generally attended with great labour, and, 
in many cases, with much perplexity. 
Diseases are often stubborn, or incurable, 
and effectually baffle the most skilful prac¬ 
titioner. In most cases, however, diseases 
are under the control of medical skill; and 
the high satisfaction which a benevolent 
physician feels, in relieving the sufferings 
of his fellow-creatures, may serve as a 
recompense for the many adverse circum¬ 
stances which attend the profession. 








L 


J 


THE CHEMIST. 


1. This globe, and every thing apper¬ 
taining to it, is composed of substances, 
which exist either in a compound or sim¬ 
ple state. It is the object of the scientific 
chemist to investigate the properties of 
these substances, and to show their action 
upon each other. By this science, there¬ 
fore, compound bodies are reduced to the 
simple elements of which they are com¬ 
posed, or new combinations formed. 

2. According to the preceding defini¬ 
tions, Chemistry comprehends an immense 
variety of objects. It is scarcely possible 
to name a thing or phenomenon in the na¬ 
tural world, to which it does not directly 
or indirectly apply; even the growth of 
vegetables, and the preparation and diges¬ 
tion of our food, depend upon chemical 
principles. 


3. The word chemistry is supposed to 
be of Egyptian origin, and, in its primary 
application, was the same with our phrase 
natural philosophy. Its meaning was af¬ 
terwards restricted to the art of working 
those metals which were most esteemed. 
In the third century, it came to be applied 
to the pretended art of transmuting baser 
metals into gold. The science, in the lat¬ 
ter sense of the word, was eagerly culti¬ 
vated by the Greeks; and from them it 
passed to the Arabians, who introduced it 
into Europe under the name of alchymy. 

4. The professors of the art were dig¬ 
nified with the appellation of alchymistic 
philosophers, and the leading doctrine of 
the sect was, that all metals are composed 
of the same simple substances; and that, 
consequently, base metals were capable of 

















































































132 


THE CHEMIST. 


being changed into gold: hence, the chief 
object of their researches was the dis¬ 
covery of an agent, by which this great 
change was to be effected. The substance 
supposed to possess this wonderful property 
was called “ the philosopher’s stonethe 
touch of which was to change every kind 
of metal into gold. 

5. The greatest rage for alchymy pre¬ 
vailed between the tenth and sixteenth 
centuries. The writers on this subject 
who appeared during that period, are very 
numerous; most of whom are unintelli¬ 
gible, except to those initiated into the 
art; many of them, however, display great 
acuteness, and an extensive acquaintance 
with natural objects. They all boast that 
they are in possession of the philosopher’s 
stone, and profess the ability of communi¬ 
cating a knowledge of making it to others. 

6. Their writings and confident profes¬ 
sions gained almost implicit credit, and 
many unwary persons were thus exposed 
to the tricks of impostors, who offered to 
communicate their secret for a pecuniary 
reward. Having obtained the sum pro¬ 
posed, they either absconded, or wearied 
out their patrons with tedious and ex¬ 
pensive processes. 

7. Chemists, for a long time, had sup¬ 
posed it possible to discover, by their art, 
a medicine which should not only cure but 
prevent all diseases, and prolong life to 
an indefinite period, even to immortality. 
This notion gradually becoming prevalent, 
the word chemistry acquired a more exten¬ 
sive application, and embraced not only 
the art of making gold, but also that of 
preparing “the universal medicine.” Some 
of these visionary men asserted, that the 
philosopher’s stone was this wonderful 
panacea, 

8. Few readers need be informed, that 
the researches for the philosopher’s stone, 


and the universal remedy, were, at length, 
abandoned, as fruitless and visionary; yet 
the numerous experiments which had been 
instituted on these accounts, were attended 
with the incidental advantage of a con¬ 
siderable dexterity in the performance of 
chemical operations, together with the dis¬ 
covery of many new substances, and val¬ 
uable facts, which, without these strong 
incentives, would have remained, at least, 
much longer in obscurity. 

9. Although none of the medicines pro¬ 
duced in the chemical laboratory answered 
the chimerical expectations of the chemists, 
in curing all diseases, and in rendering 
the perishable body of man immortal, yet 
they proved sufficiently valuable in the 
healing art, to command the attention of 
the profession all over Europe. The adop¬ 
tion of chemical medicines, however, was, 
at first, everywhere opposed, either as 
unsafe remedies, or as being inferior in 
efficacy to those which had been used for 
so many centuries. 

10. These prejudices having given way 
to the light of experience, chemical medi¬ 
cines came, at length, to occupy a con¬ 
spicuous place in the Materia Medica; 
and their value within the present centurv 
has become still more manifest. One of 
the most useful branches of Chemistry, 
therefore, is to make the various prepara¬ 
tions used in the medical art. 

11. The most efficient agent in the 
introduction of chemical medicines, was 
Theophilus Paracelsus. This singular in¬ 
dividual was born near Zurich, in Switzer¬ 
land. Having studied chemistry undei 
two masters, he commenced a rambling 
life, in pursuit of chemical and medica 
knowledge; and, having visited Italy, 
France, and Germany, where he met with 
many whimsical adventures, which con¬ 
tributed greatly to advance his reputation, 










THE CHEMIST. 


133 


he was elected, in 1527, to fill the chair 
of chemistry, in the University of Basle. 

12. One of the first acts of this arrogant 
professor was to burn, with the utmost 
solemnity, while seated in his chair, the 
works of Galen and Avicenna, declaring 
to his audience, that if God would not 
impart the secrets of physic, it was not 
only allowable, but even justifiable, to 
consult the Devil. He also treated his 
contemporaries with the same insolence, 
telling them, in a preface to one of his 
books, that “the very down on his bald 
pate had more knowledge than all their 
writers,—the buckle of his shoes more 
learning than Galen and Avicenna,—and 
his beard more experience than all their 
universities.” 

13. It could not be expected that a man 
with such a temper could long retain his 
situation; and, accordingly, he was driven 
from it, in 1528, by a quarrel with those 
who had conferred the appointment. From 
this time he rambled about the country, 
chiefly in Germany, leading a life of ex¬ 
treme intemperance, in the lowest com¬ 
pany. Nevertheless, he still maintained 
his reputation as a physician, by the ex¬ 
traordinary cures occasionally effected by 
his powerful remedies, although his failures 
were equally conspicuous. 

14. But the most signal failure of his 
remedies occurred in his own person; for, 
after having boasted for many years of 
possessing an elixir which would prolong 
life to an indefinite period, he died, in 1541, 
at Salzburg, with a bottle of his immortal 
catholicon in his pocket. The medicines 
on which Paracelsus chiefly relied, were 
opium, antimony, and various preparations 
of mercury. He has the merit of applying 
the last, especially, to cases in which they 
had not been before used; and upon this 


circumstance, his great reputation de¬ 
pended. 

15. We have been thus particular in 
noticing this individual, because he was 
the first who gave public lectures on che¬ 
mistry in Europe, and because he gave the 
first great impulse in favour of chemical 
medicines. He also carried his specula¬ 
tions concerning the philosopher’s stone, 
and the universal remedy, to the greatest 
height of absurdity; and, by exemplifying 
their inutility and fallacy in his own person, 
he contributed more than any one else to 
their disrepute and subsequent banishment 
from the science. 

16. Researches for the philosopher’s 
stone, and the universal remedy, having 
been, at length, relinquished, the chemical 
facts which had been collected became, in 
the general estimation, a heap of rubbish 
of little value. At this time, there arose 
an individual thoroughly acquainted with 
these facts, and capable of perceiving the 
important purposes to which they might be 
applied. 

17. The name of this individual was 
John Joachim Becher. He published a 
work in 1669, entitled “ Physica Subter- 
ranica,” by which he gave a new direction 
to chemistry, by applying it to analyzing 
and ascertaining the constituent parts of 
material bodies; and his system is the 
foundation of the science, as it now exists. 

18. George Earnest Stahl, a medical 
professor in the University of Halle, adopt¬ 
ed the theory of Becher, and, after his 
death, edited the work just mentioned; 
but he so simplified and improved it, that 
he made it entirely his own; and, accord¬ 
ingly, it has always been distinguished by 
the appellation of the Stahlian theory. 
The principal work of Stahl, on this sub¬ 
ject, was published in 1729; and, since 


M 







134 


THE CHEMIST. 


that time, chemistry has been cultivated 
with ardour in Germany, and in other 
countries in the north of Europe. 

19. In France, chemistry became a 
fashionable study, about the middle of the 
eighteenth century: it had, however, been 
cultivated there by a few individuals, long 
before that period. Men of eminence now 
appeared in all parts of the kingdom, and 
discoveries in the science were made in 
rapid succession. Some attention was 
also paid to it in Italy and Spain. 

20. In Great Britain, this subject attract¬ 
ed but little attention, except from a few 
individuals, until Dr. Cullen had become 
professor of the science, in the University 
of Edinburgh, in 1756. This accurate 
investigator of natural phenomena suc¬ 
ceeded in enkindling an enthusiasm for 
chemical investigations among the stu¬ 
dents ; and the subsequent experiments of 
Dr. Black, Mr. Cavendish, Dr. Priestley, 
and Lavoisier, which resulted in the dis¬ 
covery of the constituent parts of air and 
water, diffused the same ardour through 
every part of the kingdom. 

21. Lavoisier, the celebrated French 
chemist, having proved the Stahlian theory 
to be incorrect, founded another on the 
chemical affinities and combinations of 
oxygen with the various substances in 
nature. This system has been generally 
adopted, since it explains a great number 
of phenomena more satisfactorily than any 
other ever proposed. The great chemical 
agent, in the Stahlian system, was sup¬ 
posed to be an inflammable substance, 
which was denominated by the theorist 


phlogiston. To distinguish, therefore, the 
new theory from the one which it super¬ 
seded, it was called the pneumatic or anti¬ 
phlogistic system. 

22. In 1787, a new technical nomencla¬ 
ture was devised, by the aid of which all 
the chemical facts are easily retained in 
the memory. Twelve or fifteen terms 
have been found sufficient for the founda¬ 
tion of a methodical language; and, by 
changing the terminations of these radi¬ 
cals, or by prefixing certain words or syl¬ 
lables, the changes that take place in 
bodies are clearly expressed. This valua¬ 
ble innovation originated with Lavoisier 
and three other French chemists. 

23. The present century has been par¬ 
ticularly distinguished by numerous and 
important discoveries in chemical science; 
but our limits do not permit us to enter 
into further details: we will merely state, 
that, among the many eminent men who 
have devoted their attention to this com¬ 
prehensive science, Sir Humphrey Davy, 
of Great Britain, seems to be entitled to 
the greatest consideration. 

24. Chemistry is so extensive in its 
application, that we will not attempt to 
describe any of the operations of the la¬ 
boratory. We, therefore, conclude this 
article by recommending this science to 
general attention; assuring the uninitiated, 
that it is beset with fewer difficulties than 
they are apt to suppose, and that every 
effort in the course will be attended with 
interesting facts and phenomena, which 
will abundantly reward the labour of in¬ 
vestigation. 






THE DRUGGIST AND APOTHECARY. 


1. The druggist is a wholesale dealer 
in dfugs, which', in commerce, embrace 
not only articles used or recommended by 
the medical profession, but also spices, dye¬ 
stuffs, and paints. The commodities of his 
trade are obtained from almost every quar¬ 
ter of the globe; but especially from the 
countries bordering upon the Mediterra¬ 
nean sea, and from the East Indies and 
Spanish America. 

2. The chemist looks to the druggist for 
most of the materials employed in his 
laboratory; and from him the apothecary, 
physician, and country merchant, obtain 
their chief supply of medicines. There 
are, however, but few persons, in the Uni¬ 
ted States, who confine themselves exclu¬ 
sively to this branch of business; for most 
of the druggists are also apothecaries, and 


sometimes operative, or manufacturing 
chemists. 

3. Medicinals, when they come into the 
warehouse of the druggist, are usually in 
a crude state; and many, or most, of them 
must necessarily undergo a variety of 
changes, of a chemical or mechanical na¬ 
ture, before they can be applied in prac¬ 
tice. The art by which these changes are 
effected is called Pharmacy, or Pharma¬ 
ceutics; and the books which treat of 
pharmaceutical operations are denominated 
Pharmacopoeias, or Dispensatories. 

4. The operations of Pharmacy, which 
depend upon chemical principles, are con¬ 
ducted chiefly by the operative chemist; 
but those which consist merely in mechani¬ 
cal reduction, or in mixing together differ¬ 
ent ingredients, to form compounds, belong 












































































136 


THE DRUGGIST AND APOTHECARY. 


properly to the vocation of the apothe¬ 
cary. 

5. The apothecary sells medicines in 
small quantities, as they may be demanded 
for immediate appropriation by individuals 
or in families. Many of the standing com¬ 
pound preparations which have been au¬ 
thorized by the Pharmacopoeias, and which 
are in regular demand, he keeps ready 
prepared; but a great proportion of his 
business consists in compounding and put¬ 
ting i p the prescriptions of the physician, 
as they are needed by the patient. 

6. In country places, where there are 
generally no apothecary-shops, the physi¬ 
cians compound and prepare their own 
prescriptions; but in cities, where these 
establishments are numerous, the medical 
profession prefer to rid themselves of this 
trouble. In most cases, however, they 
keep by them a few remedies, which can 
be applied in cases of emergency. 

7. In Great Britain, the apothecary is 
permitted to attend sick persons, and ad¬ 
minister medicines, either according to his 
own judgment, or in conformity with the 
directions of the physician. He is, there¬ 
fore, a physician of an inferior order; and, 
as his fees are more moderate than those 
of the regular profession, his practice is 
extensive among persons who, from neces¬ 
sity or inclination, are induced to study 
economy. 

8. The apothecaries in England, Scot¬ 
land, and Ireland, are obliged to make up 
their standing medicines according to the 
formulas of the Dispensatories, adopted in 
their respective countries; and their shops 
are subject to the visitation of censors, 
who have authority to destroy those medi¬ 
cines which they may consider unfit for 
use,—so that unwholesome or inefficient 
remedies be not imposed upon the sick. 


The apothecaries’ halls, in France, are 
also under the supervision of the medical 
faculty. 

9. In the United States, there is no 
censorship of this kind established by the 
public authorities; yet the physicians are 
careful to recommend apothecaries in whom 
they have confidence, to prepare their pre¬ 
scriptions. The professors in our medical 
schools are, also, particular in naming to 
their students those druggists whom they 
consider men of honour; and omit, at least, 
to name those who have been detected in 
selling adulterated medicines. 

10. We have, also, an incorporated col¬ 
lege of pharmacy both in New-York and 
Philadelphia, and in each of these, chemical 
and pharmaceutical lectures are delivered 
by regular professors. These institutions, 
although of recent origin, have exerted an 
important influence in reforming and pre¬ 
venting abuses in the preparation of medi¬ 
cines ; and public opinion, especially in the 
cities, is beginning to render it important 
for students in pharmacy to obtain a de¬ 
gree from one of these colleges. Under 
the auspices of the institution at Philadel¬ 
phia, is published a quarterly journal, de¬ 
voted to pharmaceutical science. 

11. A Pharmacopoeia for the United 
States was formed at Washington, in 1820, 
by a delegation of physicians from the prin¬ 
cipal medical societies of the Union. A 
revision of this work is expected to be 
made every ten years. Dispensatories, as 
they exist in this country, are founded 
upon the Pharmacoepias, and may be pro¬ 
perly considered commentaries upon them, 
since the former contain the whole of the 
latter, together with more minute descrip¬ 
tions of the sensible and real properties of 
the medicines, as well as their history and 
exact mode of preparation. 






r 



THE DENTIST. 


1. The human family is subject to a 
variety of diseases in the teeth, which 
generally cause the final destruction or 
loss of these important instruments, unless 
judicious remedies be applied in proper 
season. These remedies are administered 
by the dentist. 

2. There are few persons, in proportion 
to the great mass of the people, who seem 
to be aware of the utility of dentistry ; 
for, taking the United States together, not 
more than one person in a hundred ever 
resorts to the professors of this art, with 
the view of obtaining a remedy for any 
dental disease with which he may be af¬ 
flicted. The common sentiment seems to 
be, that diseases of the teeth, and their 
final loss, at different periods of life, are 
inevitable inconveniences, to which we 

18 ‘ . 


must submit with the same philosophy 
with which we meet other misfortunes. 

3. To enable readers who have never 
examined this subject, to comprehend its 
general nature, we will give a slight 
sketch of some of the irregularities and 
diseases to which the teeth are liable; and 
as we proceed, speak of the remedies ap¬ 
plied by the dentist. 

4. Two sets of teeth regularly appear, 
at different periods of life;—one in infancy, 
and the other at a later period. The first 
set consists of twenty, and the second of 
thirty-two teeth; the former are called 
infant , and the latter adult; and all these, 
at the age of six or seven, are upon the 

\ jaws at the same time. 

5. At the age just mentioned, the infant 
| teeth begin to give way to those which lie 

M2 


* 




























































































































138 


THE DENTIST. 


deeper in the sockets, and which are de¬ 
signed to supersede the former. As the 
new teeth advance, the roots of the first 
are absorbed; and, after having been thus 
deprived of their support, they are easily 
removed,—sometimes, by a slight pressure 
of the tongue. 

6. In a majority of cases, the whole 
process is carried on by nature with the 
utmost regularity; but as she is not uni¬ 
formly successful in this operation, there 
is no other period at which the teeth of 
children require so much attention and 
care. Sometimes the second set rise in the 
socket without causing the absorption of 
the roots of the first. In such cases, the 
former approach in an improper direction; 
and, unless the latter be removed in season, 
deformity will be the consequence. 

7. When, however, these precautions 
have been neglected, and the teeth stand 
in an irregular manner, they can be re¬ 
duced to symmetry by the dentist, without 
occasioning much pain. When the front 
teeth are too much crowded by reason of 
the restricted dimensions of the jaw, the 
small teeth, situated next behind the eye 
or canine teeth, are extracted, one on each 
side, to give room to the rest 

8. From the ages of six to fifteen years, 
the teeth of children should be examined, 
at least once in six months, by a dentist, 
who, if skilful, can seldom fail of rendering 
these ornaments of the human countenance 
regular, healthy, and beautiful. It is cus¬ 
tomary in England and France, for the 
proprietors of seminaries of learning to 
employ a dentist to visit their establish¬ 
ments regularly, for the purpose of per¬ 
forming such operations, and of adminis¬ 
tering such remedies, as their pupils may 
require. 

9. The teeth are composed of very hard 
bone, and enamel. The latter is a sub¬ 


stance exceeding in density any other in 
the body. It covers the crown of the 
teeth, and is thickest in those parts which 
are most exposed to forcible contact in 
mastication; but in no place is it more 
than the twelfth of an inch in thickness. 

10. The most common disease of the 
teeth is caries, or decay, and almost every 
part of them is liable to be affected by it; 
but especially the sides of those in front, 
and the crowns of those on other parts of 
the jaws. 

11. The disease begins its attack either 
on the enamel or on the bony portion, and 
gradually extends itself over the tooth, 
until it reaches the nerves which supply 
its natural cavity. These having become 
exposed to the sudden changes of tempera¬ 
ture, and to the contact of extraneous sub¬ 
stances in mastication, pain and inflamma¬ 
tion are produced, and the extraction of 
the tooth very commonly becomes the only 
means of relief. 

12. All persons are more or less subject 
to this disease, but some much more than 
others; and caries of a peculiar character 
has been so often traced through whole 
families, from one generation to another, 
that it is considered hereditary, as much as 
any other disease to which the system is 
liable. In many cases, caries seems to be 
the effect of some serious disease which 
affected the constitution, while the teeth 
were in the early stages of formation. 

13. Although the teeth of some indi¬ 
viduals possess but little durability; and 
when caries attacks them, they go on ra¬ 
pidly to decay, in spite of all the aid which 
science and skill can afford ; yet, there are 
comparatively but few instances in which 
seasonable and judicious treatment will 
not arrest the progress of the disease. 

14. When the teeth are but slightly 
affected with caries, especially on the 







THE DENTIST. 


139 


Biaes, a cure may be accomplished by the 
removal of the decayed portion. This is 
effected, by the most approved dentists, 
chiefly with small cutting instruments. 
Formerly, the file and the saw were em¬ 
ployed for this purpose, and, by their in¬ 
discriminate and injudicious use, many 
teeth were ruined, and the art of dentistry 
itself brought into disrepute. 

15. Notwithstanding the injuries which 
have been inflicted by the improper appli¬ 
cation of the saw and file, in some instances 
they are indispensable; and, in the hands 
of the scientific operator, they need not be 
feared. They are especially useful in pre¬ 
paring the way for the employment of other 
instruments; for, in some cases, the affect¬ 
ed part can with difficulty be reached by 
any other means. But filing the teeth for 
the purpose of improving their appearance, 
or for rendering the sides more accessible 
to the tooth-pick and brush, seems to be 
reprobated by the most intelligent part of 
the profession. 

When the caries has penetrated far 
into the tooth, and, in its removal, a cavity 
of suitable form and dimensions can be 
produced, it is filled with some substance, 
with the view of protecting the bone from 
the action of extraneous agents. The 
dentist is careful to remove every particle 
of the decayed portion, and to render the 
cavity perfectly dry, by repeated applica¬ 
tions of lint or raw cotton, before he at¬ 
tempts to fill it. 

17. Gold is the only substance which 
possesses sufficient solidity to withstand the 
ordinary friction of mastication, and, at the 
same time, to be capable of resisting the 
chemical action of the substances which 
may come in contact with it: yet, lead 
and tin are frequently employed; and 
many have been made to believe, that they 
answer as good, if not a better purpose, 


than gold itself. The durability of these 
metals, however, can never be depended 
upon, and they ought not to be employed 
when the tooth is capable of resisting the 
mechanical force required to fill it properly 
with gold. 

18. The metal is prepared for the use 
of the dentist by the gold-beater, in the 
manner described in the article which 
treats upon the business of the latter. 
The leaves, however, are not beaten so 
thin as those designed for the common 
purposes of the arts. The portion to be 
applied is cut from the leaf, and, after 
having been twisted a little, is forced into 
the cavity. The metal is rendered per¬ 
fectly solid by means of instruments adapt¬ 
ed to the purpose. 

19. This operation, properly performed 
under favourable circumstances, generally 
renders the tooth as serviceable, to the end 
of life, as if it had never been diseased. 
The hopes of the patient, however, are 
sometimes disappointed, by the unskilful- 
ness of the operator, or by the general 
unhealthiness of the mouth ; arising from 
tartar, other decayed teeth, or want of care 
in keeping them free from the lodgment 
of particles of food. 

20. It is a common practice to have 
teeth extracted when they are affected 
with pain ; but this operation is not always 
necessary. In many cases, the nerve can 
be paralyzed, and the tooth plugged. By 
these means, teeth which, under the ordi¬ 
nary treatment, would be prematurely 
sacrificed, are oflen retained, for years, in 
a serviceable state. 

21. The next most destructive affection 
to which the teeth are liable, is the ac¬ 
cumulation of tartar. This is an earthy 
substance, deposited from the saliva, and 
is more or less abundant in different indi¬ 
viduals. This deposit is extremely trou 
















140 


THE DENTIST. 


blesome, and generally does much injury 
to the mouth, even before those who suffer 
from it are aware of the mischief. 

22. The tartar on the teeth of some in¬ 
dividuals, is of a black or greenish colour, 
and very hard; on those of others, brown 
or yellow, and not so firm. When it is 
first deposited, it is soft, and can be easily 
removed with a tooth-brush; but, if suffer¬ 
ed to remain, it soon becomes indurated, 
and gradually increases in thickness about 
the neck of the teeth. The gums become 
irritated and inflamed: the sockets are 
next absorbed, and the teeth, being left 
without their natural support, either fall 
out, or become so loose that they can be 
easily removed. 

23. From this cause, old people lose 
their teeth, when, in many cases, they are 
perfectly sound; but comparatively very 
few are aware of the origin of this depri¬ 
vation, or suppose that these valuable in¬ 
struments can be retained in old age. The 
loss is attributed to the deleterious effects 
of calomel, or is imagined to be an evil 
inseparable from advanced age. 

24. The affection of the gums, arising 
from causes just mentioned, is frequently 
called scurvy, and, like caries, produces 
fetor of the breath; but when these two 
diseases are combined, as is frequently the 
case, they render it extremely offensive. 
Besides, the effluvia arising from these 
diseased parts give rise to many maladies 
which terminate fatally, if a remedy be 
not applied sufficiently early to save the 
patient. 

25. The obvious remedy for diseases 
arising from tartar, is the removal of their 
cause. This is effected by the dentist, 
with small sharp cutting instruments of a 
suitable form. To prevent the tartar from 
accumulating again, and to restore the 
gums to a healthy state, nothing more is 


generally requisite than the daily use of 
a stiff, elastic brush, and the occasional 
application of some approved dentifrice or 
astringent wash. Sometimes it may be 
necessary to scarify, or to apply leeches to 
the gums. 

26. The operations of dentistry, men¬ 
tioned in the preceding part of this article, 
are those which relate to the preservation 
of the teeth ; and, if performed in a proper 
manner, and under favourable circum¬ 
stances, they will, in most instances, prove 
successful. But, as few persons resort to 
the dentist until the near approach of de¬ 
formity, or until they are impelled by pain 
to seek relief, a great proportion of dental 
operations consists in inserting artificial 
teeth, and in extracting those which are 
past recovery. 

27. When a tooth has gone so far to 
decay, that it cannot be cured by stopping , 
it should not be suffered to remain in the 
mouth, lest it infect the rest. Front teeth, 
however, when the roots remain sound, 
and firmly based in the sockets, ought not 
to be extracted, as upon the latter artificial 
teeth can be placed with great advantage. 
In such cases, the removal of the crown 
only is necessary. 

28. The instruments commonly employ¬ 
ed in extracting teeth, are the key or turn¬ 
key, the forceps, the hook, and the graver 
or punch. These are supposed to be suf¬ 
ficient to perform all the operations of this 
kind which occur in practice; and, al¬ 
though many attempts have been made to 
invent others which might answer a better 
purpose, yet those we have mentioned, in 
their improved state, are likely to continue 
ir^general use. 

29. It seems to be a common opinion, 
that any one can pull teeth who has a turn¬ 
key, and sufficient physical strength to use 
it; accordingly, blacksmiths, barbers, and 








THE DENTIST. 


141 


medical students, are the chief operators 
in this line of dental surgery. The many 
fatal accidents which must inevitably be 
the consequence, such as breaking the 
tooth or jaw-bone, are considered matters 
of course. These, however, seldom happen 
with skilful dentists; and it is to be re¬ 
gretted, that the latter are not always em¬ 
ployed, where unskilfulness may produce 
such serious consequences. 

30. In the cut, at the head of this article, 
is represented a dentist, about to extract 
a tooth for a lady, who may be supposed to 
be in a state of alarm at the sight of the 
instruments; but he, having thrown his 
right hand, which holds them, behind him, 
shows the other containing nothing, with 
the view of allaying her fears. The man¬ 
ner in which teeth are extracted, needs 
no description, since it is an every-day 
operation in all parts of the world. 

31. One of the chief sources of income 
to this profession, is the insertion of arti¬ 
ficial teeth; for, although few are willing 
to expend much to prevent the loss of their 
teeth, many will incur great expense in 
supplying the deficiencies, after they have 
occurred. So perfectly and neatly is this 
operation performed, by some dentists, that 
it is difficult to distinguish between teeth 
which are natural, and those which are 
artificial. 

32. The materials for artificial teeth 
were formerly found chiefly in the teeth 
and tusks of the hippopotamus, and in the 
teeth of some domestic animals; but within 
a few years, a mineral composition, called 
porcelain, has come into great repute, 
since it is very beautiful, and is entirely 
proof against the most powerful acids. 

33. Surgical operations upon the teeth 
were performed in ancient Greece and 
Rome, many of which were similar to those 
of the present day. The extraction of 


teeth must have been practised at a period 
of antiquity to which the records of medi¬ 
cine do not reach. The operation is re¬ 
commended by Hippocrates, who describes 
many of the diseases to which the teeth 
are liable. He also mentions the practice 
of fixing the teeth by means of gold wire, 
and gives several formulas for making 
dentrifices. 

34. Celsus, a Roman writer on medi¬ 
cine, who flourished about the beginning 
of the Christian era, seems to have beer, 
the first author who described the method 
of extracting teeth, and the first who no¬ 
tices the removal of tartar by means of 
cutting instruments, as well as filling ca¬ 
rious teeth with lead and other substances, 
with the view of preventing further decay. 
Soon after this period, false teeth, of bone 
and ivory, were introduced. Actius, a 
writer of the fourth century, is the first 
who mentions the operation of filing the 
teeth. 

35. The return of barbarism to Europe, 
nearly extinguished the knowledge of den¬ 
tistry. As a branch of surgery, however, 
it was revived by the Arabian writer, 
Albucasis, in the tenth century; but, for 
many hundred years after this period, it 
received but little attention from men of 
science, the operations of surgery being 
confined chiefly to the barbers. 

36. The first modern work on the dis¬ 
eases of the teeth was published at Lyons, 
in 1581. This was followed by many other 
publications on the same subject, in the 
succeeding century. In the year 1700, it 
began to be required in France, that all 
persons who intended to practise dentistry 
in that country, should undergo an -exam¬ 
ination, to test their qualifications. From 
this period is dated, by some, the estab¬ 
lishment of the dental art as a distinct 
branch of medical practice. 










I 


I 

I 




THE TEACHER. 




1. Education, in antiquity, was entirely 
^ matter of domestic concern. In countries 
where priestly or royal despotism prevail¬ 
ed, schools for the benefit of the sons of 
the great, and for the priests, were estab¬ 
lished. Moses, the Jewish lawgiver, was 
educated in a priestly school in Egypt, and 
Cyrus at a seminary belonging to the Per¬ 
sian court. In Palestine, the scriptures 
were taught in the schools of the prophets; 
and, at later periods, in the synagogues, 
and in the schools of the Rabbies, reading 
committing to memory, and hearing ex¬ 
planations of, the sacred books, constituted 
the chief exercises. 

2. In the Grecian cities, boys and girls 
were taught reading, writing, and arith¬ 
metic, in private schools; and, after hav¬ 
ing completed the primary course, those 


! who aspired to higher degrees of know¬ 
ledge, resorted to the instructions of the 
philosophers and sophists. This system 
was commenced as early as 500 years be¬ 
fore the advent of Christ 

3. Two hundred years after this period, 
the Romans began to have primary schools 
for boys, in the cities; and, from the time 
of Julius Caesar, who conferred on teach¬ 
ers the rights of citizenship, they possess¬ 
ed the higher institutions of the gramma¬ 
rians and the rhetoricians. In the former 
of these, were taught, scientifically, the 
Latin and Greek languages; and in the 
latter, young men of talent were prepared, 
by exercises in declamation, for speaking 
in public. 

• 4. Children, among the Greeks and Ro¬ 

mans, were accompanied to school by 



















































[TIE TEACHER. 


143 


slaves, who, from the performance of this 
duty, were called pedagogues; but, after 
slaves and freedmen had made acquire¬ 
ments in literature and science, they were 
frequently employed as tutors: hence the 
term, at length, came to imply a teacher 
of children, and it is still used in reference 
to this employment, although we usually 
connect with it the idea of pedantry. 

5. Until the time of Vespasian, who 
commenced his reign in the year 70 of the 
Christian era, the schools were sustained 
entirely by private enterprise. That em¬ 
peror instituted public professorships of 
grammar and rhetoric with fixed salaries, 
for the purpose of educating young men 
for the public service; and, in A. D. 150, 
Antonius Pius founded imperial schools in 
the larger cities of the Roman Empire. 
The most celebrated place for the cultiva¬ 
tion of science, in the ancient world, was 
Athens; and to this city, students from all 
parts of Europe resorted, even as late as 
the ninth century. 

6. Christianity, by degrees, gave a new 
turn to education; and, in the East, it 
came gradually under the influence of the 
clergy. Schools were instituted in the 
cities and villages for catechumens, and, in 
some places, those of a higher grade, for 
the education of clergymen. Of the lat¬ 
ter kind, that in Alexandria was the most 
flourishing, from the second to the fourth 
century. 

7. From the fifth century, these higher 
institutions began to decline, and others, 
called cathedral or episcopal schools, seem 
to have taken their place. In these, be¬ 
sides theology, were taught the seven libe¬ 
ral arts —grammar, logic, rhetoric, arith¬ 
metic, geometry, astronomy, and music; 
of which the three first were called the 
trivium, and the four last the quadrivium. 
The text-book employed was the Encyclo¬ 


paedia of Marcianus Capella, of Africa. 
This compendium was published at Rome, 
A. D. 470; and, although a meagre pro* 
duction, it maintained its reputation in the 
schools of Europe more than 1000 years. 

8. The imperial schools, established by 
Antonius Pius, declined, and finally be¬ 
came extinct in the confusion that follow¬ 
ed the irruption of the barbarians; but 
their places were supplied by the paro¬ 
chial and cathedral schools just mentioned. 
These, however, were surpassed, in the 
sixth century, by the conventual schools, 
which were originally designed to prepare 
persons for the monastic life, but which 
soon began to be resorted to by laymen. 

9. These schools were connected with 
the convents belonging to the order of St. 
Benedict, and served as the chief glim¬ 
mering lights during the darkest period 
between ancient and modern civilization 
in Europe. They flourished in Ireland, 
England, France, and Germany, from the 
sixth to the eleventh century. The teach¬ 
ers of these seminaries were called scho¬ 
lastic^ and from them the scholastic philo¬ 
sophy derived its origin and name. 

10. In the year 789, Charlemagne, king 
of the Franks, issued a decree for the im¬ 
provement of the schools of his empire, 
and for increasing their number. Not 
only every bishop’s see and every convent, 
but every parish, was to have its school— 
the two former for the education of cler¬ 
gymen and public officers, and the latter 
for the lower classes of people. This 
monarch instituted an academy of learned 
men, to whom he himself resorted for in¬ 
struction, and whom he employed to edu¬ 
cate his children, and a select number of 
the sons of the nobility and distinguished 
persons. 

11. The encouragement which these 
schools had received from government was 








144 


THE TEACHFR. 


soon discontinued after the death of this 
monarch, and his school establishment de¬ 
clined like that of Alfred the Great, which 
was commenced in the ninth century, on 
a scale of equal liberality. The designs 
of the English monarch were frustrated 
by the invasions of the Danes. 

12. In the mean time, the Jewish rab- 
bies had schools in Syria and in Northern 
Africa, as well as in Europe, which con¬ 
tributed to the preservation of ancient 
learning. Arabian schools were also esta- 
lished, in the ninth century, by the follow¬ 
ers of Mohamed, in their Eastern and Afri¬ 
can caliphates, and in their Moorish domi¬ 
nions in Spain. Through these institutions 
the mathematical and medical sciences 
were again revived in Europe. 

13. The cathedral and conventual schools 
continued, for a long time, the principal 
institutions for education in Europe; and 
from them proceeded many eminent men. 
By degrees the light of science began to 
shine more brightly; teachers of eminence 
appeared in different places, who collected 
around them a great number of scholars; 
and a new kind of schools arose, the heads 
of which assumed the name of rectores. 

14. In Paris, several of these teachers 
gave instructions in various branches, but 
chiefly in rhetoric, philosophy, and theolo¬ 
gy. The schools thus collected under dif¬ 
ferent masters, were, in 1206, united under 
one rector; and, on this account, the whole 
mass of teachers and scholars was denomi¬ 
nated universitas. Universities, in other 
parts of Europe, arose in a similar man¬ 
ner, and some of them about the same 
time. Those of Oxford and Cambridge, 
according to some writers, were establish¬ 
ed about the year 1200; and the two first 
of these institutions in Germany were 
founded at Prague and Vienna, the former 
in 1348, and the latter in 1365. 


15. The division of the students into 
four nations was an essential feature in 
the early universities. It arose from the 
circumstance that the pupils coming from 
different countries, spoke different lan¬ 
guages. Those whose language was the 
same, or similar, would naturally associate 
together, and attend the instructions of the 
same teachers. This division into nations 
is supposed to have grown up at Paris, 
previously to the formal union of the seve¬ 
ral schools under one rector. 

16. The first teachers, from whose ex¬ 
ertions the universities originated, com¬ 
menced their public instructions with¬ 
out permission from established authority. 
Subsequently, the state and university 
were careful to prevent all persons from 
giving lectures, who were not well quali¬ 
fied for the employment. Examinations 
were therefore instituted to determine the 
capabilities of students. Those who were 
found competent, received a formal per¬ 
mission to teach, accompanied with cer¬ 
tain symbols in the spirit of the age. 

17. The first academical degree was 
that of baccalaureus ; the second, licentia- 
tus; and the third magister: the last of 
these entitled the student to all the privi¬ 
leges of his former teachers, and constitu¬ 
ted him one of the facultas artium—the 
faculty of the seven liberal arts , since 
called the philosophical faculty. The other 
faculties were those of theology, law, and 
medicine. The first of these was institu¬ 
ted at Paris in 1259, and the two last in 
1260. The faculties elected deans from 
among their number, who, with the pro- 
cur atores, or heads of the four nations of 
students, represented the university.— 
These representatives possessed the power 
of conferring degrees in the different de¬ 
partments of literature and science. 

18. Among the public institutions of the 








THE TEACHER. 


145 


early universities were the colleges, ( col¬ 
legia .,) buildings in which students, espe¬ 
cially those who were poor, might live 
together, under superintendants, without 
paying for their lodging. In some cases, 
they received their board, and frequently 
other allowances, gratis. These institu¬ 
tions were commenced at Paris; but here, 
as well as in other places, they did not 
continue the asylums of the necessitous 
only. In France and England, the build¬ 
ings of universities are composed chiefly 
of these colleges, in which the students 
reside, and in which the business of in¬ 
struction is mainly carried on. 

19. The teachers in the universities 
were at first paid for their services by the 
students. At a later period, the magis¬ 
trates of the town or city where the insti¬ 
tution was located, made presents to emi¬ 
nent scholars, to induce them to remain. 
This practice finally led to the payment 
of regular salaries. From and after the 
fourteenth century, universities were not 
left to grow up of themselves as formerly, 
but were expressly established by public 
authorities, or by the popes. 

20. The inactivity and luxury of the 
clergy, had led to the neglect of the old 
seminaries of learning. The universities 
were therefore necessary, not only to re¬ 
vive the taste for science and literature, 
but also to form a new body of teachers. 
These institutions, however, at length be¬ 
came subject to undue clerical influence, 
since the monks obtained admission into 
them as teachers, and then laboured to in¬ 
crease the importance of their several or¬ 
ders, as well as the power of the Roman 
pontiff. 

21. The monks, also, connected with 
their convents popular schools, and under¬ 
took the education of the children in the 
cities. But their method of instruction 

19 


was exceedingly defective, since the intel¬ 
ligent investigation of the subjects studied 
was little encouraged, and since the me¬ 
mory of the pupils was brought into requi¬ 
sition to the almost entire exclusion of the 
other faculties of the mind. 

22. In the lower parish schools, the 
children were not permitted to learn to 
write, the monks being desirous of con¬ 
fining to the clergy the practice of this 
art, which was very lucrative before the 
invention of printing. The art was called 
ars clericalis; and, for a long time, the 
privilege of establishing writing schools 
for the children of citizens, was a matter 
of negotiation between the magistrates 
and the clergy. 

23. But the citizens becoming, at length, 
more independent, the magistrates them¬ 
selves began to superintend the education 
of youth. Trivial schools were establish¬ 
ed, in which the trivium y reading, and 
writing, were taught; but for these, as 
well as for the cathedral and parish schools, 
which had been neglected for some time 
by the higher clergy, itinerant monks and 
students were employed as teachers. 

24. The elder pupils of the highest class 
frequently wandered from one school to 
another, under the pretence of pursuing 
their studies, sometimes taking with them 
younger scholars, whom they compelled to 
beg or steal, in order to supply their wants* 
As late as the sixteenth century, Luther 
complains that these vacantivi (or idlers) 
were the persons chiefly employed as 
schoolmasters in Germany. 

25. A pious fraternity, called Jerony- 
mites, consisting of clergymen and laymen, 
who lived together, and occupied them¬ 
selves partly in mechanic arts, and partly 
in the instruction of youth, exerted con¬ 
siderable influence on education in gene¬ 
ral. They first established themselves ii> 

N 








I 


THE TEACHER. 


146 


Italy, and afterwards in the Netherlands, 
on the Rhine, and in Northern Germany. 

26. Much was done during the last half 
of the fourteenth century, and in the one 
hundred years that followed, to encourage 
the study of the ancient classics. The 
attention of literary men was turned to 
these interesting remains of antiquity by 
the arrival of many learned Greeks, who 
had fled from Turkish oppression, and who 
had brought with them the ancient wri- 
tings. 

27. These treasures of former civiliza¬ 
tion were unfolded to the modern world by 
the art of printing, which was invented in 
1441; and the reformation, which com¬ 
menced in 1517, also aided the advance¬ 
ment of education. The corporations of 
the German cities, in which the reformed 
religion was received, founded seminaries, 
called gymnasia, and lyceums, with per¬ 
manent professorships. A vast amount of 
property, belonging to the convents and 
the church, was confiscated by the govern¬ 
ments, and appropriated chiefly to the pro¬ 
motion of education. 

28. The schools in the countries which 
adhered to the Roman Catholic religion, 
however, continued in nearly the same 
state, until the Jesuit schools arose, to¬ 
wards the end of the sixteenth century. 
These, on account of the ability with 
which they were conducted, soon gained 
the ascendency, and for a long time main¬ 
tained their reputation; but they at length 
degenerated, and finally became extinct, 
on the suppression of the order of Jesuits 
in 1773. 

29. Italy, Spain, and Portugal, have for 
a long time been inactive in relation to 
education, it being left entirely to the 
clergy, and the efforts of the people in 
their individual capacity. Much has been 
done in Austria, within fifty years, to ad¬ 


vance this important interest. Under the 
late emperor, professorships were consti¬ 
tuted in the universities and cathedral 
seminaries for the instruction of teachers; 
and gymnasia, common and Sunday schools, 
were established in almost every part of 
the kingdom. 

30. The general organization of schools 
in France, in the eighteenth century, was 
similar to that of most other Catholic coun- 

J tries. The government did nothing foi 
the education of the people at large; and 
i the church, which possessed a large pro¬ 
portion of the property of the nation, left 
the people in total ignorance; whence may 
have arisen much of the atrocity which 
marked the early part of the revolution. 

31. During the popular reign, the edu¬ 
cation of youth was declared to be under 
the care of the state, and many schools, 
called 'polytechnic , were established. Na¬ 
poleon, also, afterwards instituted several 
military schools, and contemplated the in¬ 
troduction of a system of general educa¬ 
tion. With this view, he instituted an 

j imperial university, which was to have 
the supreme direction of instruction in 
France ; but his designs were but partial- 
I ly carried into effect. 

32. When the Bourbons were again re- 
stored to the throne of France, they, with 
the clergy, laboured to restore the old or¬ 
der of things; and, to keep the common 
people from becoming dangerous, the Lan- 
casterian schools, established in 1816, were 
abolished. This condition of things has 
not been since materially changed; ana 
it is stated, upon satisfactory grounds, that 
at least one third of the population are 
unable to read. 

33. In England and Ireland, although 
the middling and higher classes are com¬ 
paratively well educated, no system of 
general instruction has ever been estab- 














THE TEACHER. 


147 


iished for the benefit of the common peo¬ 
ple. Much, however, has been accom¬ 
plished by charity and Sunday schools; the 
former of which were commenced in 1698, 
and the latter in 1812. Besides these there 
are numerous charitable foundations on 
which many persons of limited means have 
been educated at the higher institutions. 

^4. In Scotland, more liberal provisions 
have been made for general education. 
The system was commenced in the reign 
of William and Mary, when, by an act of 
Parliament, every parish was required to 
maintain a school. The people have so far 
improved their privileges, that nearly all 
of the inhabitants of that part of Great 
Britain can read and write. 

35. The government of Russia, during 
the last and present century, has directed 
some attention to the promotion of educa¬ 
tion. According to the decrees of the em¬ 
peror Alexander, schools of different grades 
were to be established throughout the em¬ 
pire ; but these decrees have been yet only 
partially executed. 

36. In no part of the world has the edu¬ 
cation of all classes of people been so much 
attended to as in the United States. This 
has arisen chiefly from the circumstance, 
that a remarkable proportion of the colo¬ 
nists were persons of education. This was 
particularly the case with those of New 
England, where the instruction of youth, 
from the very beginning of the settle¬ 
ments, was made a matter of public con¬ 
cern. 

37. The principle of making public pro¬ 
vision for this purpose, thus early adopted, 
has never been deserted; on the contrary, 
it has become so deeply interwoven with 
the social condition of the people of New 
England, that there are few families in 
that part of the Union, which are not 
within reach of a public school: and, in 


every state where the influence of the peo¬ 
ple from that section of countrv is pre¬ 
dominant, public schools have been organ¬ 
ized by legal provisions, and a fund has 
been provided, by which at least a part of 
the expense of supporting them is paid. 

38. In all the states in which these pri¬ 
mary institutions are established by legis¬ 
lative enactments, they are kept in opera¬ 
tion, in country places, between six and 
nine months of the year. A master is em¬ 
ployed in the winter, and a mistress in 
the summer: the former receives for his 
services from ten to fifteen dollars per 
month, and the latter, from seventy-five 
cents to two dollars per week, together 
with boarding. The teachers, however, 
during their engagement are compelled to 
reside in the different families of the dis¬ 
trict, their stay at each place being deter¬ 
mined, with scrupulous exactness, by the 
number of children sent to the school. 

39. From the low salaries received for 
these important services, and the short pe¬ 
riods for which engagements are made, it 
is evident, that teaching a district school 
cannot be pursued as a regular employ¬ 
ment These schools are therefore sup¬ 
plied by persons who, during the rest of 
the year, follow some other business; or 
by students, who rely, in part or entirely, 
on their own exertions to defray the ex¬ 
penses of their academical, collegiate, or 
professional education. 

40. These schools are, no doubt, insti¬ 
tutions of great value; but in the states 
where they have been established,, they 
are evidently much overrated. They fail 
in fully accomplishing the ends for which 
they have been instituted, through the ex¬ 
treme tenacity with which the people ad¬ 
here to ancient and defective methods of 
instruction, the frequent change of teach¬ 
ers, and the small compensation allowed 









148 


THE TEACHER. 


for the services of competent instruct¬ 
ors. 

41. In the cities and populous towns or 
villages, the public schools are kept up 
during the whole of the year, and the sys¬ 
tem of instruction is generally better than 
that pursued in the country. In New- 
York, Philadelphia, Baltimore, and in some 
other cities, the Lancasterian plan of mu¬ 
tual instruction, with some modifications, 
is preferred, principally on account of its 
cheapness. 

42. Select-schools and private acade¬ 
mies are, also, very numerous. These are 
located chiefly in the cities and populous 
towns, and are supported entirely by fees 
for tuition received from the parents or 
guardians of the pupils. These institutions 
do not differ essentially from those of a 
private nature in similar situations in other 
parts of the United States, where com¬ 
mon schools are not established by law. 

43. In the Southern states, wealthy fa¬ 
milies often employ private tutors. Some¬ 
times two, three, or more families, and 
even a whole neighbourhood, unite for the 
purpose of forming a school; and to induce 
a teacher to commence or continue his la¬ 
bours among them, an adequate amount is 
made up beforehand by subscription. South 
of Pennsylvania, Delaware, and the Ohio 
river, such engagements are commonly 
made for a year, as, in that section of the 
Union, the opinion prevails that a teacher 
can do but little towards improving his pu¬ 
pils in a much shorter time. 

44. The literary institutions which are 
next above the common schools, and which 
are established by legislative authority, 
are the academies, of which there are be¬ 
tween five and six hundred in the United 
States. Some of these have been founded 


by the funds of the state in which they 
are located, some by the union of a few 
spirited individuals, or by private be¬ 
quests. 

45. The course of instruction pursued 
in these seminaries of learning varies con¬ 
siderably from each other. In some of 
them it is confined chiefly to the common 
branches of education; in others, the course 
is pretty extensive, embracing natural and 
moral philosophy, chemistry, belles let- 
tres, and a sound course of mathematics, 
together with Latin, Greek, and some of 
the modern languages. One great object 
in these institutions is to prepare students 
for college. The teacher who has charge 
of an academy is called the principal, 
while the teacher who may aid him in his 
labours is denominated the assistant or 
usher. 

46. The highest institutions of learning 
among us are the colleges and universi¬ 
ties. Between these, however, there seems 
to be but little difference, since the course 
of studies is nearly or quite the same in 
both, and since the charters obtained from 
the legislatures grant to both similar pow¬ 
ers of conferring honorary degrees. The 
whole number of these establishments in 
the United States is about sixty. 

47. The principal teachers in the colleges 
are denominated professors, who confine 
their labours to communicating instruc¬ 
tions in particular branches of literature 
or science. These are aided by assistants 
called tutors. The latter are generally 
young men who devote two or three 
years to this employment, before entering 
upon the practice of a profession. The 
number of professors and tutors in iVie 
several colleges varies according to their 
amount of funds and number of students. 






I 





THE MUSICIAN, AND THE MUSICAL INSTRUMENT MAKER. 


THE MUSICIAN. 

1. The word Music , in its modern appli¬ 
cation, has reference to the science which 
treats of the combination of sounds. It is 
founded upon the law of our nature,—that 
every leading passion has its peculiar tone 
or note of expression understood by all hu¬ 
man beings. Music, therefore, may be 
supposed to have been practised in the 
earliest ages; although it must have been 
a long time before it arose to the import¬ 
ance of a science. 

2. According to the Mosaic records, 
Jubal, one of the descendants of Cain, 
played upon musical instruments, many 
hundred years before the flood. In the 
early period of the nations of antiquity, 
and in fact among all semi-barbarous peo¬ 
ple of later periods, the character of poet 


and singer were united in the same indi¬ 
vidual, and the voice was frequently ac¬ 
companied by musical instruments. The 
oldest song which has descended to our 
times, and which is stated to have been 
exhibited in this manner, was that sung 
by Miriam, the sister of Moses, on the oc¬ 
casion of the passage of the Red Sea by 
the children of Israel. 

3. The Hebrews employed music in 
their celebration of religious worship, 
which consisted, in part, in chanting sol¬ 
emn psalms with instrumental accompani¬ 
ments. It was also used by them on the 
occasion of entertainments, as well as in 
the family circle. It reached its greatest 
perfection amongst the Jews, in the days 
of David and Solomon. It is supposed 
that the priests of Egypt were versed in 

N 2 













































































































































150 


THE MUSICIAN. 


music, before the settlement of the family 
of Jacob in that country; but how far the 
Israelites were indebted to them for a 
knowledge of this pleasing art, is altoge¬ 
ther uncertain. 

4. Music was held in very high estima¬ 
tion among the Greeks, who attributed to 
it incredible effects. They even assure 
us that it is the chief amusement of the 
gods, and the principal employment of the 
blessed in heaven. Many of their laws, 
and the information relative to the gods 
and heroes, as well as exhortations to vir¬ 
tue, were written in verse, and sung pub¬ 
licly in chorus to the sound of instruments. 

5. It was the opinion of the philosophers 
of Greece, that music was necessary to 
mould the character of a nation to virtue; j 
and Plato asserts, that the music of his 
countrymen could not bq altered, without 
affecting the constitution of the state itself. 
But in his time and afterwards, complaints 
were made of the degeneracy in this art, 
and a deterioration of national manners 
through its influence. The degeneracy 
probably consisted in its application to 
the expression of the tender passions; it 
having been previously applied, in most 
cases, to awaken patriotic and religious 
feeling. 

6. The invention of music and of musi¬ 
cal instruments, as in the cases of most of 
the arts and sciences among the Greeks, 
was attributed by the poets to some of the 
gods, or else to individuals of their own 
nation. It appears, however, from their 
traditions, that they received this art, or 
at least great improvements in its execu¬ 
tion, from Phoenicia or Asia Minor. It be¬ 
gan to be cultivated scientifically in Greece 
about 600 years before the advent of Christ. 

7. The Romans seem to have derived 
the music which they employed in reli¬ 
gious services from the Etruscans, but that 


used in war and on the stage from the 
Greeks. At an early period of their his¬ 
tory, it was a great impediment to the 
progress of the art, that it was practised 
only by slaves. 

8. The Roman orators pitched their 
voice, and regulated the different intona¬ 
tions through their speech, by the sound of 
instruments; and on the stage, the song, 
as well as part of the play itself, was ac¬ 
companied with flutes. Wind-instruments 
of various kinds, comprised under the gen¬ 
eral name of tibia , and sometimes the 
cythera and harp, accompanied the chorus. 
In all these applications of music, the 
Romans had been preceded by the Greeks. 

9. The Hebrews employed accents to 
express musical tones, but most other na¬ 
tions of antiquity used letters of the al¬ 
phabet for this purpose; and as they had 
not yet conceived the idea of the octave 
or parallel lines, to express a variety of 
tones in a similar manner by the aid of a 
key, they required a number of notes that 
must have been exceedingly perplexing. 

10. The Greeks are said to have had 
about one thousand notes, half of which 
were for vocal, and the other half for in¬ 
strumental music. All these were ex¬ 
pressed by placing the letters of their alpha¬ 
bet, or parts of them, in different positions. 
Accents were also used, partly by them 
selves, and in connexion with the letters. 

11. The lines of a poem, set to music, 
were placed under the letters expressing 
the tones. The letters for the instrument¬ 
al part were placed first, and under them 
those for the voice. The notes of the 
Greeks and Romans were not required to 
indicate the time in which they were to 
be pronounced, since in general the sylla¬ 
bles of their language had a natural and 
distinct quantity. In the cases in which 
there was a liability to mistake, the sylla- 













THE MUSICIAN. 


151 


blcs were marked with A, if long, and 
with B, if short. 

12. The Romans expressed the fifteen 
chief tones of the Greeks with the fifteen 
first letters of the Latin alphabet; and 
these were reduced to seven, by Pope 
Gregory I., towards the end of the sixth 
century; so that the first seven capital 
letters were used for the first octave, the 
small letters for the higher octave, and the 
same letters doubled, for the highest octave. 
Parallel lines were soon after invented, on 
which the letters were written. 

13. Musical sounds were expressed in 
this manner until the year 1024, when, 
according to some authors, Guido Aretine, 
a monk of Arezzo, invented points and 
rhombuses. He also introduced the use 
of five parallel lines, upon and between 
which his notes were written. The seven 
letters which had formerly been used as 
notes, now became clifs. 

14. Still, however, the means of deter¬ 
mining the duration of sound belonging to 
each note, without consulting the quantity 
of the syllables in the verses to be sung, 
were yet to be provided. This desidera¬ 
tum was supplied by one Franco, a German 
of Cologne, who lived towards the end of 
the eleventh century. Some, however, 
attribute this improvement to John de 
Murs. The division of one note into others 
of less value was invented, in the sixteenth 
century, by Jean Mouton, chapel-master to 
King Francis I. of France. 

15. The knowledge of music, as a sci¬ 
ence, was preserved in Europe, after the 
overthrow of the western empire, through 
the influence of the church. The apostles, 
and Hebrew converts generally, had been 
accustomed to the sacred music of the 
Jews; and, on this account, it was easy to 
continue the use of the same psalms and 
hymns in the Christian church. 


16. Many of the Grecian and Roman 
melodies were also set to words adapted to 
Christian worship. In regard to the man¬ 
ner of singing, in the early days of the 
church, it was sometimes in solo , some¬ 
times in alternate strains, and at other 
times in chorus; in which the whole as¬ 
sembly joined, repeating what had been 
before sung or read. In the fourth cen¬ 
tury, with the view of securing the proper 
execution of this part of divine worship, 
precentors were instituted, who were con¬ 
sidered regular officers of the church. 

17. Pope Gregory I., surnamed the Great, 
distinguished himself by establishing a new 
singing-school, which became a model for 
many others, in the western division of the 
church. In consequence of these schools, 
the singing became more artificial; and 
this, together with the circumstance that 
the hymns were in Latin, which had be¬ 
come obsolete, at length excluded the peo¬ 
ple from any participation in this part of 
the public worship. 

18. Gregory also made a selection of 
the existing songs of the church, and intro¬ 
duced a chant , which, through his influ¬ 
ence, and that of his successors, was a 
length extended throughout Europe. I 
received the appellation of the Gregorian 
chant from his name. It was also called 
the choral song , because it was sung by a 
choir. This chant is said to be the found¬ 
ation of our present church-music. 

19. Music, in distinct parts, was not 
known until after the introduction of tl e 
improved method of writing music, in¬ 
vented, as before stated, by Guido Aretine 
and Franco. The development of harmony, 
in four parts, was assisted by the choral; 
but it was more particularly advanced by 
musical instruments, and especially by the 
organ. In the fifteenth century, music be¬ 
gan again to be treated scientifically. 











152 


THE MUSICAL INSTRUMENT MAKER. 


20. The reformation produced great 
changes in the character of sacred music. 
Before that event took place, this part of 
religious worship was confined to a few 
fixed forms of texts, as in the mass, and this 
is still the case in the Roman Catholic 
church; but the Protestants allow great 
variety both in the poetry and music. 
Luther’s agency in the production of these 
changes was very considerable. During 
the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, 
church music became continually more 
brilliant, and always more corrupted, by 
the intermixture of profane music. 

21. In the sixteenth and seventeenth 
centuries, there grew up, at the courts of 
the European monarehs, the free chamber 
style, from which arose that which was 
afterwards used in the theatre. The 
opera, which originated with three young 
noblemen at Florence in 1594, has contri¬ 
buted especially to the splendour and va¬ 
riety of modern vocal music; the advance¬ 
ment of which is claimed particularly by 
the Italians, as that of the instrumental 
kind is claimed by the Germans and French. 

22. The composition of music, and its 
execution, either vocally or instrumentally, 
as well as the business of imparting a 
knowledge of it to others, are embraced in 
the employment of the musician; although 
it is seldom that all these branches are 
practised by one and the same individual. 
Music is one of the fine arts, and, during 
the middle ages, was one of the branches 
of what was then considered a learned edu¬ 
cation. 

23. Since the scientific revival of music, 
the art has had so many distinguished tr> 
fessors that we will not attempt even to 
give a list of their names. Their number 
was increased, and the art greatly per¬ 
fected, by the singing-schools, called con¬ 
servatories, established especially in Italy, 


either at the public expense, or by the 
liberality of individuals. 


THE MUSICAL INSTRUMENT MAKER. 

1. This artist unites in his business 
some of the operations of the cabinet-ma¬ 
ker, turner, and brazier. He, also, is de¬ 
pendent upon the wire-drawer, and the 
tanner and currier, for some of his mate¬ 
rials. So great, however, is the number 
of musical instruments, and so different 
their nature and construction, that the 
business of making them is divided into 
several branches; all of which are never 
pursued, or carried on, by one person. 
But, without reference to the several 
divisions of this business, we will pro¬ 
ceed to mention or describe the principal 
instruments which are now in most com¬ 
mon use. 

2. The organ is the largest of all musi¬ 
cal instruments, and, in its improved state, 
so complex that a mere description of it 
cannot be well understood. Nevertheless, 
we will endeavour to give the reader some 
idea of the general principles on which it 
is constructed. 

3. The most essential and prominent 
parts of this machine are the wind-chest , 
the pipes , and the bellows. The former of 
these is an oblong box, made perfectly air¬ 
tight, and placed in a horizontal position. 
The top of this chest is perforated with 
several rows of holes of different sizes, and 
into these are inserted the pipes. Those 
for the higher notes are of a cylindrical 
form, and are made of a mixture of metals, 
chiefly of tin and lead ; but those designed 
for the expression of the lowest tones of 
the base are made of wood, in a square 
form. The dimensions of these pipes are 
regulated by a diapason or scale. 

4. There are as many of these rows o* 














THE MUSICAL INSTRUMENT MAKER. 


153 


pipes, which are called stops, as there are 
kinds ot tones in the organ; and to every 
row or stop is a plug, attached to a slide, 
which is denominated a register , and which 
is designed to regulate the admission of 
wind into the pipes. The pipes are also 
furnished with valves, which can be opened 
at pleasure, by means of keys similar to 
those of the piano-forte. Some organs 
have few, others have many stops; and, 
in order to regulate the force of sound, 
most church organs have two or three 
rows of keys, whereby a greater or less 
number of pipes may be filled, and the 
powers of the instrument may be controlled 
in what is called the small organ, or let 
loose, so as to become the full organ. 

5. The fingering of an organ is precisely 
similar to that of the piano-forte, so far as 
relates to the position of the keys; but, on 
account of the great number of holding 
notes in organ music, and the manner in 
which the sound is produced, the fingers 
are more kept down; whence it is con¬ 
sidered injurious for performers on the 
piano-forte to practise on the organ, lest 
that lightness of touch, so necessary for 
the former instrument, be affected. It is 
hardly necessary to remark, that during 
the performance on the organ, the wind- 
chest is filled by means of the bellows. 

6. The structure of the organ is lofty, 
elegant, and majestic; and its solemnity, 
grandeur, and volume of tone, have obtain¬ 
ed for it a pre-eminence over every other 
instrument for the sacred purposes to which 
it has been applied. The largest organ 
known is in St. Peter’s church, at Rome. 
It has one hundred stops. 

7. The church organ was probably sug¬ 
gested by the water organ of the Greeks, 
which was invented five or six hundred 
vears before our era. At what period or¬ 
gans began to be employed in churches, 

20 


cannot now be ascertained. By some, it 
is said that Pope Vitelianus caused them 
to be used in Rome in the seventh century. 
Others are of opinion, that t^ey were not 
introduced until three hundieu years later. 
But, be this as it may, the church organ 
was not in common use until the fourteenth 
century; and now it is very different in 
its construction from that of early times. 
It has received many additions and im¬ 
provements since the beginning of the 
fifteenth century. 

8. The hand or barrel organ consists of 
a movable cylinder, on which, by means 
of wires, pins, and staples, are marked the 
tunes which it is intended to perform. 
These pins and staples, by the revolution 
of the barrel, act upon the keys within, 
and give admission to the wind from the 
bellows to the pipes. The hand organ is so 
contrived that the revolution of the barrel 
gives motion to the bellows. 

9. There are several instruments be¬ 
longing to the class of horns, all of which 
are made of brass or silver. Those of the 
latter kind of metal are by far the softest 
in tone, but brass is the material most 
commonly employed. The chief instru¬ 
ments belonging to this class are the 
trumpet, the French horn, the bugle, the 
Kent bugle, the trombone, and the bass- 
horn. The serpent seems to be the con¬ 
necting link between the trumpet and the 
flute. 

10. The instruments classed with the 
flute, are the common flutes of various 
keys, German flutes, and several kinds of 
flageolets. Nearly allied to these are the 
clarionet, the hautboy, and bassoon. The 
breath is applied to the flageolet through 
an ivory tube at the end; and in the three 
last named instruments, a thin reed, capa¬ 
ble of a free vibration, is a part of the 
mouth-piece. 














154 


MUSICAL INSTRUMENT MAKER. 


11. Of the instruments which produce 
musical sounds by the vibration of strings, 
there are a great number, of which the 
following are the principal:—the lyre, the 
harp, the guitar, the lute, the dulcimer, 
the harpsichord, the spinnet, the piano¬ 
forte, the violin, the violincello, and the 
base-viol. The strings of the three last 
are agitated with a bow; but those of 
this class first mentioned, are vibrated by 
the thumb and fingers, by some little in¬ 
strument held in the hand, or by little 
hammers, moved by keys, as in the piano¬ 
forte. 

12. The piano-forte is said to be the 
invention of Christian Gottlieb Schroder, 
of Hohenstein, in Saxony, born in Dresden 
about the year 1717. Before the introduc¬ 
tion of this instrument, the clavichord, 
harpsichord, and spinnet, supplied its place. 
On all of these instruments complete har¬ 
mony can be produced by a single per¬ 
former, and the most difficult series of 
tones can be executed with rapidity, by 
means of a simple mechanism. 

13. The pianoforte has been gradually 
improved, until it has become one of the 
most elegant instruments in the whole 
compass of musical practice. In firmness 
and strength of tone, the English piano¬ 
fortes formerly surpassed all others; but, 
within a few years, they have been equal¬ 
led, and in some respects excelled, by 
those of American workmanship. The 
manufacture of this instrument constitutes 
the most extensive branch of musical in¬ 
strument-making. 


14. The instruments of percussion are 
the military drum, base-drum, kettle-drum, 
tabour, tamborine, and the triangle. The 
kettle-drum has received its name from its 
conformation. It has but one head, and is 
used in orchestres, and by the cavalry of 
modern armies, especially in Europe. The 
tabour has two heads, about three inches 
apart, and is beaten with one stick. The 
tambourine has one head, drawn over a 
hoop, to which are attached small bells and 
bits of tin, to make a jingling sound. The 
time is beaten on the head with the hand. 

15. The bag-pipe is a wind instrument 
of high antiquity among the northern na¬ 
tions of Europe, but it has been so long a 
favourite with the natives of Scotland, 
that it may be considered their national 
instrument. It consists of a leather bag 
and three pipes. The first of the latter 
is that by which the droning noise is pro¬ 
duced, the second emits wind from the 
bottom of the bag, and the third is that on 
which the music is made. 

16. During the performance on the bag¬ 
pipes, the bag is placed under the arm, 
and worked like a bellows, while the notes 
are modulated as in a flute or hautboy, by 
stopping and opening the holes, eight in 
number, with the ends of the finger and 
thumb. In some instances, the bag is fill¬ 
ed by means of the breath blown into it 
through a pipe. In Rome, at the time cf 
Advent, the peasants of the mountains 
express their veneration for the Virgin by 
playing on this instrument before her im¬ 
age. 








THE SCULPTOR. 


1. Sculpture is one of the fine arts. In 
its most extended sense, it includes not 
only modelling’ figures in clay, wax, and 
plaster of paris, and carving them in wood, 
stone, and marble, but also casting them 
in bronze, lead, or iron, as well as en¬ 
chasing and engraving. 

2. The productions of this art are known 
under various denominations, but the prin¬ 
cipal are statues, busts, and bas-reliefs . 
The first of these are entire representa¬ 
tions of men or animals in full relief; the 
second are upper parts of statues; and the 
last are figures more or less elevated from 
the body or ground on which they are 
formed. 

3. The different degrees of elevation in 
reliefs, are expressed by various terms 
borrowed from the Italian. A figure is 


said to be in alt'i rtlievo, or high relief, 
when but a small proportion of it is buried 
in the back-ground; in mezzo relievo , or 
middle relief, when one half of it is above 
the surface; and in basso relievo, or low 
relief, when but little elevated, like figures 
upon coin. Bas-reliefs are usually applied 
as ornaments to buildings and pediments 
to statues. 

4. The subjects of sculpture, with a few 
exceptions, are the same as those of paint¬ 
ing ; and the course of study essential to 
proficiency in either, is very similar. They 
both require much taste and practice, and 
a thorough knowledge of the human form 
and other objects frequently represented. 
The young artist begins with imitating 
the most perfect modeds of Grecian art; 
and, after having become well acquainted 














































































































































































































156 


THE SCULPTOR. 


with their beauties, he proceeds to the 
imitation of nature. 

5. When any considerable work in stone 
or marble is to be done, the sculptor forms 
a model of clay or wax to guide him 
in the execution. The soft material is 
moulded to the proposed form with the 
hands and small instruments of ivory. The 
model is by far the most difficult part of 
the work, and it is here the genius of the 
artist is to be displayed. The process of 
copying the model in stone or in any other 
substance, is an operation merely mechan¬ 
ical, and can often be done by another per¬ 
son as well as by the scientific sculptor 
himself. 

6. The model having been prepared, the 
block of marble or stone is marked at cer¬ 
tain points corresponding to its chief ele¬ 
vations and concavities. The material is 
then wrought to the rough outline of the 
figure, by means of strong steel points, 
drills, and other perforating tools; and the 
asperities are afterwards removed with 
chisels, together with rasps and files of 
different shapes. When a high polish is 
required, it is produced by friction with 
pumice-stone, tripoli, and straw ashes. 

7. Marble and stone are carved in a 
similar manner; but the latter, being soft¬ 
er, can be wrought with less difficulty. 
The defects which may be met with in the 
stone are repaired with a composition of 
plaster of Paris and the same stone, pul¬ 
verized and mixed with water. 

8. Casts in plaster of Paris and bronze 
are taken from models, statues, busts, bas- 
reliefs, and living persons. To do this, it 
is necessary to form a mould from the sub¬ 
ject to be copied. This is done by spread¬ 
ing over it some soft substance, which can 
be readily forced into all the cavities, and 
which will harden by drying or cooling. 


Plaster of Paris is the most usual material 
employed for this purpose. 

9. When the subject is a bas-relief, or 
any other one-sided figure of a similar 
kind', the mould can be withdrawn with¬ 
out injury, in a single piece; but if it is a 
statue, or any other figure of like form, it 
is necessary to divide the mould into sev¬ 
eral pieces, in order to a safe removal. 
These pieces again united constitute a 
perfect mould. While moulds are being 
formed on the face of a living person, he 
breathes through tubes inserted into the* 
nostrils. 

10. In taking casts from such a mould, 
the internal surface is oiled to prevent ad¬ 
hesion, and then plaster mixed with water 
is poured into it through a small orifice. 
The mould is afterwards turned in every 
direction, that the plaster may cover every 
part of the surface; and when a sufficiency 
of it has been distributed to produce the 
requisite strength, and the plaster has ac¬ 
quired the proper solidity, the several 
pieces are removed from the cast, which, 
of course, is an exact resemblance of the 
subject on which the mould was formed. 

11. Superfluous portions of the materia], 
produced by the seams in the mould, are 
removed with suitable instruments, and 
applications of fresh plaster are made, 
where necessary to repair blemishes. The 
cast is finished by dipping it in a varnish 
made of soap, white wax, and water, and 
afterwards rubbing it with soft linen. The 
polish produced in this manner approaches 
that of marble. 

12. The durability of plaster casts, ex¬ 
posed to the weather, is greatly increased 
by saturating them with linseed oil com¬ 
bined with wax or rosin. They are made 

j to resemble bronze by the application of a 
, soap composed of linseed oil and soda, and 













THE SCULPTOR. 


157 


coloured with the sulphate of copper and 
iron. 

13. Moulds are, also, formed of a warm 
solution of glue, which hardens upon cool¬ 
ing, and such are called elastic moulds. 
This material is sometimes preferred on 
account of its more easy separation from 
irregular surfaces. For small and delicate 
impressions in bas-relief, melted sulphur 
is sometimes employed ; also, a strong so¬ 
lution of isinglass in proof spirits. All 
three of the substances last mentioned 
yield sharper impressions than plaster of 
Paris. 

14. Statues designed to occupy situa¬ 
tions in which they may be exposed to the 
weather and mechanical violence, are often 
made of bronze, cast in moulds. The ex¬ 
ternal portions of the mould are made on 
the pattern, out of plaster, brick dust, and 
water. The mould is then covered on the 
inside with a coating of clay as thick as 
the bronze is intended to be, and the sev¬ 
eral pieces are afterwards put together, or 
closed. The internal cavity is next filled 
with a composition like that on the other 
side of the clay. 

15. When this has been done, the sev¬ 
eral pieces forming the outside of the 
mould are separated, and the clay care¬ 
fully removed. These having been again 
united, and the core or internal portion 
of the mould secured in its true posi¬ 
tion, the whole is bound with iron hoops, 
and thoroughly dried. The melted bronze 
is poured into the cavity formed by the re¬ 
moval of the clay, through an aperture 
made for the purpose. The cast is after¬ 
wards rendered smooth by mechanical 
means. 

16. It is conjectured with much reason, 
that sculpture was one of the arts prac¬ 
tised before the deluge, and that it was 
transmitted to posterity by the survivors of 


that catastrophe. The first images were 
probably made for the purpose of perpetu¬ 
ating the memory of the dead; but, in pro¬ 
cess of time, they became objects of adora¬ 
tion. As the Chaldeans were unquestion¬ 
ably the first idolaters, so are they supposed 
to have been the first who made progress 
in sculpture. 

17. The first notice of this art in the 
Mosaic writings, is found in the passage 
relative to the teraphim, or idols, which 
Rachael, the wife of Jacob, carried clan¬ 
destinely, from her father’s house: and 
the first persons mentioned in the bible, as 
artists, are Aholiab and Bezaleel, who 
formed the cherubim which covered the 
mercy-seat, together with some other fur¬ 
niture of the tabernacle, and the sculptured 
ornaments of the garments of the high- 
priest. 

18. From the same authority, we learn 
that the nations expelled from Canaan, by 
the Jewish people, were not ignorant of 
sculpture and painting; for Moses repeat¬ 
edly commands the latter to destroy the 
pictures and molten images which might 
be discovered in their progress through the 
land. The Israelites crossed the river Jor¬ 
dan about 1500 years before the commence¬ 
ment of our era. 

19. From this time to the end of the 
Jewish polity, we often meet in the scrip¬ 
tures with indications of the fine arts; but 
the splendour of Solomon’s temple, clearly 
points out the days of that prince as the 
period in which they had attained their 
greatest perfection in Judea. 

20. The Babylonians, Assyrians, and 
Phoenicians, became considerably skilful 
in sculpture, at a very early period, as we 
learn from early history, and some existing 
remains. The same remark is also appli¬ 
cable to the inhabitants of Hindostan. 
But writers have been more particular in 




158 


THE SCULPTOR. 


noticing the style of design among the 
Egyptians, because the progress of the 
arts among that people is more easily 
traced, and because it is supposed to elu¬ 
cidate that of most other ancient nations. 

21. The chief objects of sculpture, 
among the Egyptians, were pillars, and 
other architectural ornaments, idols, the 
human figure, animals, and hieroglyphics, 
engraved in a kind of bas-relief on public 
edifices and the forms of animals. Most 
of the great works of this nation are sup¬ 
posed to have been executed during and 
after the reign of Sesostris, who lived in 
the days of Rehoboam, king of Israel, 
or about 1000 years before the Christian 
era. 

22. But of all the nations of antiquity, 
the Greeks were the most distinguished 
for sculpture. They derived the first ru¬ 
diments of the art from the Phoenicians, 
or Egyptians, although they assert that 
they themselves were its inventors. Its 
existence, in a rude state, among that peo¬ 
ple, preceded that of letters, or scientific 
architecture. 

23. Dsedalus, who lived about 100 years 
after Moses, was the first sculptor among 
the Greeks, of any notoriety. The statues 
made before his time, were stiff, formal 
figures, having the arms attached to the 
body, and the legs united, like the mum¬ 
my-shaped productions of Egyptian art. 
He separated the legs of his statues, and 
placed them, and the upper extremities, in 
a natural position. He also was the first 
sculptor who made the eyes of his statues 
open. On account of these improvements, 
the Greeks said, that his divine genius 
made statues walk, and see, and speak. 

24. The disciples and imitators of Doe- 
dalus were called his sons, and artists, 
generally, Dcedalides. Soon after this 
period, schools of design were established 


in the island of Angina, at Corinth, at Si- 
cyon, and in Etruria, in Italy: but it seems 
that no good representations of the human 
form were effected until near the time of 
Phidias, who was born 444 years before 
Christ. 

25. This most distinguished of all the 
votaries of sculpture, flourished at or near 
the same time with the dramatic poets, 
iEschylus, Euripides, and Sophocles; the 
philosophers, Socrates, Plato, and Anaxa¬ 
goras; and the statesmen and command¬ 
ers, Pericles, Miltiades, Themistocles, Ci- 
mon, and Xenophon. This was the most 
refined period of Grecian history, and of 
all others, the most favourable in its moral 
and political circumstances, for the de- 
velopement of genius. 

26. Phidias was the author of the ideal 
style , which, in the fine arts, may be de¬ 
fined, the union of the perfections of any 
class of figures. Among the distinguished 
productions of this artist, the colossal sta¬ 
tues of Minerva and Jupiter Olympius, 
made of gold and ivory, have excited the 
greatest astonishment. The former, exe¬ 
cuted for the Parthenon of Athens, was 
twenty-six cubits in height; and the latter, 
for a splendid temple at Elis, was about 
the same height, although seated upon a 
throne. 

27. The favourite disciples of Phidias, 
were Alcainenes, of Attica, and Agoracri- 
tus, of Paros; and at the same time with 
them, flourished Polycletus, of Argos, Mi¬ 
ron, of Bceotia, and Pythagoras, of Rhe- 
gium. The beautiful style soon succeeded 
to the ideal; the authors of which, were 
Praxiteles and Scopas, who brought the 
art to the highest perfection,—since, in 
their productions, they united beauty and 
grace. After the days of these two artists, 
sculpture began to decline; although it 
continued to be practised with consider- 











THE SCULPTOR. 


159 


able success, for some centuries after this 
period. 

28. The great superiority of the Greeks 
in the art of sculpture, is ascribed to vari¬ 
ous causes; among which are classed, 
their innate love of beauty, and their own 
elegance of form, combined with the fre¬ 
quent opportunities of studying the human 
figure, in places where youth were in the 
habit of performing athletic exercises, in 
a state of nudity. To these may be added, 
the practice of awarding to citizens a sta¬ 
tue of their owm persons, for eminent ser¬ 
vices to the state, and for excelling in ex¬ 
ercises at the public games. 

29. The fine arts were nearly extin¬ 
guished in Greece, by the conquest of the 
Romans; who, with ruthless rapacity, 
seized upon, and transferred to their me¬ 
tropolis and villas, the superb works of 
taste with which the country abounded. 
By these means, however, a taste for the 
arts was produced among the Romans, who 
encouraged with great liberality the Greek 
artists who resorted in great numbers to 
their city. 

30. The arts at length declined at 
Rome, and finally became nearly extinct 
in that city soon after Byzantium was 
made the capitol of the Roman Empire, 
in 329 of the Christian era. The new 
capitol was enriched by the most valuable 
statuary of the old metropolis, and by a 
farther pillage of Greece. Artists were 
also encouraged with a magnificence simi¬ 
lar to that of former times; and many new 
subjects in painting and sculpture, in illus¬ 
tration of the Christian scriptures, were 
executed as embellishments for the sacred 
buildings of the city. 

31. The art of sculpture necessarily de¬ 
clined during the time of the unsettled 
state of Europe, which followed the con¬ 
quests by the barbarous nations. It, how¬ 


ever, was not altogether lost, but was oc¬ 
casionally practised, although in a very 
rude manner, in several kingdoms of Eu¬ 
rope. In the eleventh century, after the 
terrors of the northern invasions had pass¬ 
ed away, and the governments had become 
more established, the arts of design began 
a regular course of improvement, which 
has been denominated their revival. 

32. This improvement was promoted 
by means of the frequent intercourse which 
had sprung up between the commercial 
cities of Italy and the Greek empire. In 
1016, the Pisans founded their great 
church, called the Dome of Pisa; and, in 
its construction, they employed many no¬ 
ble pillars and other fragments of Grecian 
edifices. They also engaged upon the 
work several Grecian sculptors and paint¬ 
ers, who exerted in their service the little 
skill which had come down from antiquity. 

33. The specimens of ancient art thus 
introduced at Pisa, and the works of these 
artists, at length incited several Italians 
to emulation; among whom was Nicolo 
Pisano, who became the restorer of true 
taste in the arts, in the thirteenth century. 
At this period, the crusades had diffused 
such a zeal for the Christian religion, that 
magnificent churches were built in every 
part of Italy, in the designing of which, 
and in their decoration with sculpture, 
Pisano and his scholars were universally 
employed. 

34. John Pisano, the son of Nicholo, was 
also an architect and sculptor of eminence, 
and by him was built, for king Charles, a 
castle, and several churches, at Naples. 
He also executed several pieces of sculp¬ 
ture, and superintended the construction 
of some edifices in Tuscany. This sculp¬ 
tor, who died in 1320, had several pupils, 
of whom Agostino and Agnolo Sanesi were 
the best sculptors of the time. 










160 


THE SCULPTOR. 


35. In 1350, an academy of design was 
formed at Florence by the union of several 
sculptors, painters, and architects. This 
institution was called after St. Luke, whom 
tradition makes a painter by profession. 
The society was afterwards munificently 
patronized by the Medici, a noble and 
wealthy family of that city. 

36. From this school, there soon pro¬ 
ceeded a great number of skilful artists, 
among whom were the sculptors Lorenzo 
Ghiberti, Donatello, and Brunileschi; and 
after these, others perhaps still more dis¬ 
tinguished, until it produced Michael An¬ 
gelo Buonarotti, who, as a universal ge¬ 
nius in the arts of design, has excelled 
every other artist, whether ancient or mo¬ 
dern. 

37. This great man was bom in Flo¬ 
rence, in 1474. His father, having dis¬ 
covered his talent for designing, made him 
a pupil of Dominic Ghirlandaio, who in¬ 
structed him in the first principles of the 
art of drawing. He studied statuary un¬ 
der Bartoldo; and, in his sixteenth year, 
copied the head of a satyr in marble, to 
the admiration of all connoisseurs. On 
account of his great promise, he was libe¬ 
rally patronized by Lorenzo de Medicis, 
who, besides allowing him a pension, gave 
him a lodging in the palace, and a place 
at his table. After the death of this prince, 
he enjoyed the same favours from his son, 
Pietro de Medicis. 

35. His reputation as an artist having 
been established at Florence, he was call¬ 
ed to Rome by Julius II. From this time, 
he remained chiefly in the service of the 
popes, for whom he executed many inimi¬ 
table works, both of sculpture and paint¬ 
ing 1 . He was also an architect of the first 
order; and, as such, was employed on St. 
Peter’s church, as well as on several other 


public edifices. He died in 1564, at an 
advanced age. 

39. Sculpture, having been brought to 
as high a state of perfection as it was ever 
likely to be carried, began to decline in 
Italy, as it had done before, under similar 
circumstances, in ancient times; but as 
barbarism did not again occur to over¬ 
whelm it, it did not entirely disappear. It 
continued to be practised, although in a 
very inferior degree, until it was again 
revived by Antonio Canova, near the close 
of the eighteenth century. 

40. The French nation, from its vicinity 
and intercourse with Italy, obtained from 
that country the means of improvement in 
every branch of the fine arts. According¬ 
ly, native artists of considerable merit oc¬ 
casionally appeared. The kings of France, 
also, often employed Italian architects and 
sculptors on their great public works. In 
the reign of Francis L, Leonardo da Vinci, 
and two other artists from Italy, establish¬ 
ed a school of fine arts similar to that of 
St. Luke, at Florence; and the genius of 
the people, added to national munificence, 
have kept a respectable school of sculpture 
to the present time. 

41. Considerable ability in sculpture has 
likewise been exhibited by the native 
artists of Spain, Germany, Holland, Eng¬ 
land, and some other countries of Europe; 
but whatever skill has been displayed in 
any of these countries has been derived, 
in an indirect manner at least, from Italy. 
In the United States, the fine arts have 
been cultivated with considerable spirit. 
An academy for this purpose has been es¬ 
tablished both in New-York and Philadel¬ 
phia, and a picture gallery has been con¬ 
nected with the Athenteum in Boston, in 
which the annual exhibition of paintings 
is respectable. 








1 


J 


THE PAINTER 



1 Painting is the art of representing 
visible objects, by means of lines and co¬ 
lours, on a plane surface, so as to produce 
the appearance of relief. It is justly rank¬ 
ed among the highest of that class of arts 
denominated fine, or liberal; and its ten¬ 
dencies and powers being similar to those 
of poetry, it is considered an employment 
worthy of men of the most exalted rank. 

2. The theory and practice of this in¬ 
genious and delightful art, are divided by 
its professors into five distinct branches,— 
invention , composition , design , chiaro¬ 
scuro., and colouring. Invention relates 
to the choice of subjects to be introduced 
into a picture. It is this which gives the 
highest character to the artist, as it affords 
the greatest opportunity to display the I 
powers of his mind. I 

21 


3. Composition regards the general dis¬ 
tribution and groupingof figures, the choice 
of attitudes, the disposal of draperies, the 
situation of the scene itself, as well as the 
arrangement and connexion of the various 
parts of the scenery. Invention and com¬ 
position are employed particularly in the 
first rough sketch of a picture. 

4. Design refers to the expression of a 
proposed picture in simple contour, or out¬ 
lines. It is applied in making the first 
rough sketch of the picture, whether in 
miniature or in its full size, as well as in 
the more accurate expression of the form 
of the figures, in its final finish. The 
artist, in making his design, is guided in 
drawing his lines by the rules of perspec¬ 
tive , according to which he is able to fore¬ 
shorten objects, and thereby diminish the 

O 2 

































































































































































































































162 


THE PAINTER. 


space which they occupy, without giving 
them the appearance of diminished mag¬ 
nitude. 

5. Perspective has been defined the art 
of delineating the outlines of objects on 
any given surface, as they would appear 
to the eye, if that surface were transpa¬ 
rent, and the objects themselves were seen 
through it, from a fixed position. For ex¬ 
ample: when we look through a window 
at a mass of buildings, and observe that 
part of the glass to which each object, line, 
or point appears opposite, we find that their 
apparent position is very different from 
their real. A delineation of these objects 
on the glass, as they appear, would be 
termed a representation in perspective. 

6. Correct perspective is the foundation 
of scientific painting; and, next in impor¬ 
tance to this, is a proper distribution of 
light and shade. This branch of the art 
is called chiaro-obscuro, or, when abridged, 
chiaroscuro. The term is Italian in its 
origin, and its literal meaning is clear and 
obscure. To the skilful management of 
light and shade, we are indebted for 
the strength and liveliness of pictures, 
and their relief, or the elevation which 
certain parts appear to assume above the 
plane upon which the objects are repre¬ 
sented. 

7. By the aid of perspective and chiaro¬ 
scuro, very good representations in one co¬ 
lour are attained. Drawings in India-ink 
and crayons, as well as pictures taken 
from engraved plates and wood cuts, are 
specimens of such productions. But a 
nearer approach to the appearance of na¬ 
ture, is made by the employment of colours 
analogous to those which are found to ex¬ 
ist in the objects to be represented. 

8. To produce various hues in painting, 
the artist employs colouring substances^ 
which, either alone or by mixture, are 


analogous to them all: and, in their use, 
he is careful to apply them in such a man 
ner that the true colours remain distinct 
from the lights and shades necessary to 
produce the objects in relief. Artificial 
colours are divided into warm and cold 
The former are those in which red and 
yellow predominate; the latter are blue 
gray, and others allied to them. 

9. Before colouring substances can bo 
applied in painting, they must be reduced 
to extreme fineness, and be mixed with 
some tenacious fluid, to cause them to ad¬ 
here to the surface on which they are to 
be spread. The fluid employed for this 
purpose, and the mode of applying the eo. 
lours, have given rise to the different kinds 
of painting; of which the following are 
the principal:— crayon , water-colour , dis¬ 
temper , fresco , and oil-painting. 

10. The most simple mode of applying 
colours is by means of crayons. They are 
made of black lead, a species of chalk, or 
of a mixture of colouring matter with gum, 
size, or clay. For painting in ivater-colours , 
the substances employed in communicat¬ 
ing the tints are combined with gum, and 
formed into cakes or lozenges. When 
about to be used, they are dissolved in 
water, on glass or a glazed surface. The 
application in painting, is made bv t»eans 
of a camel’s-hair pencil. 

11. Painting in distemper is used for 
the execution of works on a large scale, 
such as stage scenery, and the walls of 
apartments. The colouring substances are 
mixed with water, rendered tenacious by 
size or solutions of glue. Skimmed milk, 
increased in tenacity by a small quantity 
of thyme: linseed or poppy oil often serves 
as a vehicle for the colours, in this kind of 
painting. 

12. Paintings in fresco are executed on 
walls of plaster. The colouring matter 






THE PAINTER. 


163 


mixed with water, being applied to the 
plaster while the latter is in a fresh state, 
sinks in, and incorporates itself with it, so 
as to become very durable. During the 
execution of the work, the plaster is ap¬ 
plied to the wall in successive portions, no 
more being added at a time, than can be 
conveniently painted before it becomes 
dry. Works of this kind must be exe¬ 
cuted with great rapidity; and, on this 
account, patterns, called cartoons , are pre¬ 
viously drawn on large paper, to guide the 
artist in his operations. 

13. Oil painting derives its name from 
the mixture of the colours in oil. The 
oils used for this purpose are extracted 
from vegetables; and, on account of the 
rapidity with which they dry, are denomi¬ 
nated drying oils. For most purposes, this 
mode of painting is decidedly superior to 
all others. It admits of a higher finish, as 
it allows the artist to retouch his works 
with greater precision. The colours also 
blend together more agreeably, and pro¬ 
duce a more delicate effect. Oil paintings 
are executed either on canvas, wood, or 
copper. 

14. Paintings are imitated with sur¬ 
prising elegance, by cementing together 
coloured pieces of glass, and marble, as 
well as those of wood. Representations 
by these means, are called Mosaics, or 
Mosaic paintings. The cause of their 
having received this appellation cannot 
be ascertained. Some, without much rea¬ 
son, attribute the origin and name of this 
branch of the art to Moses. Others sup¬ 
pose that works of this kind have been 
thus denominated, because they were first 
employed in grottoes dedicated to the 
Muses. 

15. Drawings and paintings are divided 
into classes, according to the nature of the 
objects represented ; the principal of which 


are— historical, architectural, landscape , 
marine, portrait, still life, grotesque, ho 
tanical, and animal. The subordinate di 
visions of these branches are very numer¬ 
ous. 

16. The propensity to imitation, so 
deeply rooted in the human mind, is the 
foundation of the arts of design; and there 
can scarcely be indicated a lengthened pe¬ 
riod in the history of man, in which it was 
entirely inactive. It may have first been 
accidentally exhibited in tracing the form 
of some object in the sand ; or resem¬ 
blances in sticks and stones, may have 
originally suggested the idea of imitations 
by means of lines and colours. 

17. Although painting and sculpture 
may be supposed to have existed, at least 
in a rude state, at a very early period, 
and even before the deluge, yet the reign 
of Semiramis, queen of Assyria, 2000 
years before Christ, is the earliest to 
which authentic history extends. Diodo¬ 
rus Siculus relates, that the queen, having 
thrown a bridge across the Euphrates, at 
Babylon, erected a castle at each end of 
it, and inclosed them with walls of consi¬ 
derable height, with towers upon them. 
The bricks of which they were construct¬ 
ed, were painted before they underwent 
the fire, and were so put together, that 
single figures, and even groups of them, 
were represented in colours. 

18. This author supposes also, that the 
arts had attained nearly an equal degree 
of cultivation about the same time in 
Egypt; sculpture, as best serving idola¬ 
trous purposes, being in both countries 
much in advance of the sister art of paint¬ 
ing. But, in neither country was painting 
or sculpture brought to a great degree of 
perfection. 

19. In Egypt, independent selection of 
objects, and variety of exhibition, never 









164 


THE PAINTER. 


appear to have been much regarded. 
When a specific form of character had 
been once adopted, so it remained, and 
was repeated, unchanged, for ages. Little 
action and no'expression were given to 
figures. The chief employment of the 
Egyptian artists, seems to have been the 
painting of the chests of mummies, and 
the ornaments on barges, and earthen¬ 
ware. 

20. Painting, in the early days of its 
existence, was employed chiefly in the ex¬ 
hibition and preservation of historical facts; 
and, wherever it remained faithful to these 
objects, it was obliged to sacrifice the beau¬ 
tiful to the significant. Only in those coun¬ 
tries where alphabetical writing existed, 
could painting elevate itself to a fine art. 

21. The Pelasgi, who expelled or sub¬ 
dued the earlier inhabitants of Greece, and 
colonized that country, probably brought 
with them the rudiments of this art; and 
it at length grew up with its sister arts. 
In some of the stages of its progress, this 
intelligent people, no doubt, received use¬ 
ful hints from other countries, and espe¬ 
cially from Egypt; yet they finally sur¬ 
passed all the nations of antiquity in this 
branch of art. 

22. The Greeks, with singular care, 
have preserved the names of their artists 
from the earliest periods of their practice. 
Ardens, of Corinth, Telephanes and Crato, 
of Sycion, and some others, are noticed as 
such, when painting had advanced no far¬ 
ther than the mere circumscription of 
shadows by single lines. 

23. The different kinds of painting, as 
marked by the successive stages of the 
art among the Greeks, are as follows:— 
1. The skiagram , or drawing in simple 
outlines, as in the circumscriptions of sha¬ 
dows. 2. The monogram , including both 
the outlines and others within them. 3. The 


monochrome or picture in a single colour. 
4. The polychrome or picture of many 
colours. 

24. Although the names of the Grecian 
artists were carefully preserved, the time 
in which they lived was not distinctly 
marked until the 16th Olympiad, or 719 
years before the commencement of our 
era. At this time, Candaules, king of Ly¬ 
dia, purchased a picture called the Battle of 
the JNIagnetes, for which he paid its weight 
in gold, although painted on boards. The 
name of the fortunate artist was Bular- 
chus. 

25. Notwithstanding the fame of this 
picture, Aglaophon and Polygnotus, of 
Thasos, who flourished 300 years after 
this period, were the first eminent paint¬ 
ers. Polygnotus is said to have been the 
first who gave a pleasing air to the drape¬ 
ries and head-dresses of females, and to 
have opened the mouth so far as to exhibit 
the beauty of the teeth. 

26. Still, painting is considered to have 
been in an inferior state, until the appear¬ 
ance of Timanthes, Parrhasius, and Zeux¬ 
is, who flourished about 375 years before 
Christ. These again were surpassed by 
their successors, Protogenes, Pamphilus, 
Melanthius, Antiphilus, Theon, Euphranor, 
Apelles, and Aristides, who carried the art 
to the greatest perfection to which it at¬ 
tained in ancient times. 

27. Of the preceding list of artists, Apel¬ 
les was the most famous, especially as a 
portrait painter. He was the intimate 
friend of Alexander the Great, who would 
never permit any other person to paint his 
likeness. His most celebrated painting, 
was this prince holding the lightning with 
which the picture is chiefly illuminated. 
By a happy application of perspective and 
chiaro-scuro, the hand with the lightning 
seemed to project from the picture. 







THE PAINTER. 


165 


28. From the time of these great mas¬ 
ters, painting gradually declined, although 
the art continued to be practised by a suc¬ 
cession of eminent men, who contended 
against the blighting influence of the lux¬ 
ury and the internal broils of their coun¬ 
trymen. But soon after Greece became 
subject to the Roman power, the practice 
of the fine arts nearly ceased in that coun¬ 
try. 

29. Before the foundation of Rome, the 
arts were cultivated, to some extent, in 
Etruria and Calabria; but the first Roman 
painter mentioned in history, was Fabius, 
a noble patrician, who painted, in the year 
of the city 450, the temple of the goddess 
Salus, and thereby obtained for himself 
and family the surname of Pictor. Yet 
the citizens do not seem to have profited 
by this example ; for no other painter ap¬ 
peared among them until 150 years after 
that period. At this time, Pacuvius, the 
poet, amused himself, in the decline of 
life, with painting the temple of Hercules. 

30. They were thus inattentive to the 
cultivation of this, as well as of the other 
fine arts, because they considered warfare, 
and the arts which tended directly to sup¬ 
port this interest, as alone worthy of the 
attention of a citizen of their republic; 
and painting, even after the time of Pecu- 
vius, was considered effeminate and dis¬ 
graceful. Rome, therefore, can not be 
said, at any time, to have produced a sin¬ 
gle artist who could approach the excel¬ 
lencies of those of its refined neighbours, 
the Greeks. 

31. They, however, having ornamented 
their metropolis and villas with specimens 
of the arts plundered from the cities of 
Greece and Sicily, began at length to ap¬ 
preciate their excellencies; and finally, 
under the first emperors, they encouraged, 


with great munificence, the Greeks who 
resorted to their city for employment. 

32. But, both sculpture and painting, 
as well as architecture, declined with Ro¬ 
man civilization. Still, they continued to 
exist, especially in the Byzantine or East¬ 
ern Empire, although in a very inferior 
state. The art under consideration was 
preserved chiefly by its application to the 
purposes of Christianity. It was revived 
in Italy, in the beginning of the twelfth 
century, by means of several Grecian art¬ 
ists, who had been employed to ornament 
the churches, and other edifices at Pisa, 
Venice, and Florence. 

33. The works of Apollonius, one of 
these Greeks, excited in Giovanni Cima- 
bue a spirit of emulation; and, having been 
initiated into the practice of the art, he 
executed a picture of the Virgin Mary, as 
large as life, for a church dedicated to her, 
at Florence. This production excited en¬ 
thusiastic delight in his fellow-citizens, 
who carried it in procession, with the 
sound of trumpets, to its place of destina¬ 
tion, and celebrated the day as a public 
feast 

34. Encouraged by this applause,Cimabue 
pursued the art with ardour; and, although 
considered a prodigy in his time, his utmost 
efforts failed to produce tolerable speci¬ 
mens of the art. He, however, far ex¬ 
celled his immediate predecessors; and, 
by introducing more correct proportions, 
by giving more life and expression to his 
figures, and by some other improvements, 
he became the founder of the art as it ex 
ists in modern times. He was born a‘ 
Florence, in 1240, and died at the age of 
sixty. 

35. The favourite pupil of Cimabue 
was Giotto, whom he raised from a shep¬ 
herd to be a painter ; and by him the ar! 






166 


THE PAINTER. 


was still more relieved from the Greek 
imperfections. He abandoned the use of 
labels as means of distinguishing the dif¬ 
ferent figures of a picture, and aimed at, 
and attained to, real expression. He mark¬ 
ed out to the Italians the course in which 
the art should be pursued, as Polygnotus 
had done to the Greeks near 1800 years 
before; although, like him, he failed in 
fully exemplifying his principles. 

36. His abilities procured him the pa¬ 
tronage of Pope Boniface VIII., who em¬ 
ployed him at Rome. From this time, 
the art of painting became attached to 
the papal dignity, and few succeeding 
pontiffs have neglected its use. The skill 
and celebrity of this ingenious artist ex¬ 
cited great emulation, and the arts having 
obtained an earnest of profit and honour, 
no longer wanted skilful professors or illus¬ 
trious patrons. 

/ 37. In 1350, fourteen years after the 
death of Giotto, his disciple, Jacopo Cas- 
sentino, and nine other artists, founded the 
Academy of St. Luke, at Florence. This 
was a grand epoch of the arts; as from 
this institution arose a large display of 
talent, increasing in splendour until, within 
150 years, it gave to the world, Masaccio, 
Leonardo da Vinci, Michael Angelo Buo- 
narotti, and Raphael, besides others of 
great ability. 

38. The art advanced but little after the 
time of Giotto, until the appearance of 
Masaccio. Under the hand of this great 
master, painting is said to have been great¬ 
ly improved; and it was to him that the 
artists who succeeded were indebted for a 
more sure and full direction of the course 
in which they ought to proceed. He was 
born in 1402, and died in 1443. 

39. Leonardo da Vinci, who was born 
about two years after the death of Masac¬ 
cio, brought the art to still greater perfec¬ 


tion ; and being endowed with uncommon 
genius, all the arts and sciences did not 
seem to afford a field sufficient for the ex¬ 
ertion of his talents. He grasped at all* 
and succeeded far better than his prede¬ 
cessors in everything he undertook; but 
he wasted much of his time in experi¬ 
ments. Had he confined his great power* 
to the art of painting, he would probably 
have never been exceeded. 

40. About the year 1410, oil came to be 
used as a vehicle for paints. It seems to 
have been first applied to this purpose in 
Flanders, by John Van Eyck, of Brussels; 
or it was, at least, first used by him suc¬ 
cessfully. The first hint of its utility in 
this application is thought, with reason, to 
have been obtained from its use as a var¬ 
nish to pictures painted in water-colours. 

41. The art of painting was introduced 
into Flanders about the time of Giotto, by 
several Flemings, who had been to Italy 
for the express purpose of learning it. It 
was also diffused in practice, about the 
same time, in Germany; and a particular 
style of the art grew up in each of these 
countries. But it was in Italy alone that 
the art may be said to have flourished in 
a high state of cultivation; and even there, 
the principal productions originated from 
artists of the Florentine school. 

42. The art of painting was perfected, 
perhaps, as far as human ability can carry 
it, in the first half of the sixteenth centu¬ 
ry, by Michael Angelo Buonarotti, Ra¬ 
phael, Titian, and Correggio; although it 
cannot be said that all its excellencies 
were united in the productions of any one 
of these distinguished professors: such a 
union has never yet been displayed, nor 
can it hardly be expected. 

43. The art was essentially aided in its 
progressive stages of advancement by the 
liberal patronage of the family of the Me- 








THE PAINTER. 


167 


dici at Florence, and by the pontiffs at 
Rome, Angelo and Raphael were both 
employed at Rome by Julius II. and Leo 
X., as well as by others who succeeded 
them in the papal chair, in ornamenting 
the palaces and sacred buildings. Their 
productions have never been exceeded in 
any country, and they still remain the ob¬ 
jects of careful study by artists of this 
profession. 

44. Titian was also liberally patronized 
at Rome, as well as in other parts of Italy, 
and in Spain and Germany, chiefly as a 
portrait and landscape painter. The un¬ 
rivalled productions of these great masters, 
however, were fatal to the art in Italy, 
since their superior excellence extinguish¬ 
ed emulation, by destroying the prospect 
of equal or superior success. 

45. The flourishing state of the art in 
Italy, for so long a period, might be ex¬ 
pected to have produced a taste for its cul¬ 
tivation in other parts of Europe; but this 
was the case only to a limited extent. No 
other countries have yet been particularly 
distinguished for artists in this branch of 
the fine arts, except Flanders and Holland; 
and these were chiefly indebted for the 
distinction to Peter Paul Rubens, of Ant¬ 
werp, who was born at Cologne, in 1577, 
and to Paul Van Rhyn Rembrandt, who 
was born in 1606, in his father’s mill, near 
Leyden. Some of the scholars of these 
masters were eminent painters. Anthony 
Vandyck, a pupil of the former, in particu¬ 
lar, is said to have never yet been equalled 
as a portrait-painter. 

46. Very little is known of the art in 
Spain, until about the year 1500, although 
it is supposed to have been cultivated with 
some success before that time. The ex¬ 
amples which were left there by Titian 
produced a favourable impression, and se¬ 
veral native artists of considerable emi¬ 


nence afterwards appeared; but the art 
became nearly extinct in the following age. 

47. The proximity of France to Italy, 
and the employment of Leonardo da Vinci 
and other eminent artists of Italy by 
Francis I., together with the establishment 
of a school of fine arts, as stated in the 
preceding article, might have been ex¬ 
pected to lay the foundation of exalted 
taste in this kingdom. Nevertheless, the 
only French painters whose names have 
come down to us with any pretensions to 
excellence for one hundred and fifty years, 
were Jean Cousin, Jaques Blanchard, Ni¬ 
cholas Poussin, and Charles Le Brun. The 
last, although inferior to Poussin, is at the 
head of the French school of painting. 

48. The successors of Le Brun were 
not wanting in ability, yet, with a few ex¬ 
ceptions, they failed in reaching an envia¬ 
ble eminence in the art, on account of 
their servile imitation of the false taste of 
their popular model. The fantastic style 
of Le Brun became unpopular in France 
some time previous to the revolution m 
that country; and another, of an opposite 
character, and by artists of other nations 
thought to be equally distant from true 
taste, has been since adopted. 

49. Very little is known of the state of 
the fine arts in England until the time of 
Henry VIII., who encouraged the abilities 
of Hans Holbein, an eminent painter from 
Switzerland. But painting and sculpture, 
and particularly the former, having become 
intimately interwoven with the religion of 
the church of Rome, they fell into disre¬ 
pute in England after the change of opinion 
on this subject in that country. They, 
however, began to revive in the eighteenth 
century, and England and English Ameri¬ 
ca have since produced some eminent paint¬ 
ers, among whom are Hogarth, Reynolds, 
Opie, West, Copley, Trumbull, and Peale. 









Engraving is the art of cutting let¬ 
ters or figures in wood, metals, or stone. 
It was practised in very ancient times, 
and in different countries, for the purposes 
of ornament and monumental inscription ; 
but the idea of taking impressions on pa¬ 
per, or on any other substance, from en¬ 
graved surfaces, is comparatively modern. 


THE WOOD ENGRAVER. 

1. Tiie Chinese are said to have been 
the first who engraved figures and letters 
on wood, for the purpose of printing. The 
precise time at which they commenced 
the practice, is totally unknown; but a 
nook printed by them in the tenth century 
js now extant. It is thought by some an¬ 
tiquarians, that the Europeans derived the 


art from the Chinese, through the Veni- 
tians, who traded in that part of the world 
earlier than any other Europeans. 

2. This opinion is somewhat probable, 
from the circumstance that the tools em¬ 
ployed by the early engravers in Europe, 
are similar to those used in China; and 
also, like the Chinese, they engraved on 
the side of the grain. However this may 
be, it is certain that the art was practised 
in various parts of Europe in the four¬ 
teenth century. The earliest subjects ex¬ 
ecuted, were figures of saints, rudely en¬ 
graved in outline. The prints taken from 
them were gaily coloured, and sold to the 
common people as original paintings. The 
principal persons engaged in this traffic 
were monks, to whom the art was con¬ 
fined for a considerable time. 


















































































THE ENGRAVER. 


169 


3. At length, larger subjects, with inscrip¬ 
tions in imitation of manuscript, were ex¬ 
ecuted. The success of these prints gave 
rise to a more extensive application of the 
art. Scriptural subjects, of many figures, 
with texts of scripture, were engraved, 
and impressions were taken from them on 
one side of the paper, two sheets being 
pasted together to form a leaf. Entire 
sets were bound up together; and thus 
were formed the first printed books, which, 
oeing produced entirely from wood cuts, 
are known by the name of block-books. 
These books made their appearance about 
the year 1420. 

4. One of the earliest of these produc¬ 
tions is denominated “ The Apocalypse of 
St. Johnanother “ The Poor Man’s Bible.” 
But one of the latest and most celebrated, 
is called “ The Mirror of Salvation,” pub¬ 
lished in 1440. Part of the text was print¬ 
ed from solid blocks, and part from movea¬ 
ble wooden types. From this fact, it is 
easy to discover the origin of printing. 
After this, most, if not all, of the books, 
were printed from movable types; but as 
they were embellished with wood cuts, 
the demand for such engravings was very 
much increased, although they were, at 
first, by no means elegant. 

5. Near the close of the fifteenth cen¬ 
tury, the art began to assume a higher 
character, principally by the talents of 
Michael Wolgermuth and William Pluy- 
den wurf. Albert Durer made still greater 
improvements; and, in 1498, published his 
celebrated Apocalypse of St. John, printed 
from folio blocks. Other celebrated en¬ 
gravers succeeded him in the sixteenth 
century, which may be considered the era 
when wood engraving was at its highest 
point of elevation. After this, the art de¬ 
clined, and was considered of little im¬ 
portance, until it was revived in 1775, 

22 


by the distinguished William Bewick, of 
Newcastle, England. It is still practised, 
especially in England and the United 
States, in a manner which reflects credit 
on the ingenuity of the age. 

6. The earlier artists operated on vari¬ 
ous kinds of wood, such as the apple, pear, 
and beech; but these, being too soft, are 
now used only for calico-printing and other 
common purposes. The box-wood, on ac¬ 
count of its superior texture, is used for 
every subject that can be termed a work 
of art. That from Turkey is the best. 

7. The engravers, in the infancy of the 
art, prepared the wood as the common 
block-cutters now do. The tree was cut 
the way of the grain, in planks, and of 
course they engraved on the side of the 
grain, as upon a board. This mode of pre¬ 
paration enabled them to execute larger 
subjects. The engravers now prefer the 
end of the grain, and therefore cut the log 
transversely. 

8. The end on which the engraver is to 
exert his skill, is planed and scraped, to 
render the surface smooth, and the block 
having been cut to the proper size, the 
drawing is made upon it in India-ink, or 
with a lead-pencil. The block is now 
ready for being cut by the artist, who, in 
the performance of the operation, holds it 
with one hand, on a cushion made of 
sand and leather, while, with the other he 
cuts away the superfluous wood. The 
part intended to make the impression in 
printing, is left standing. 

9. Wood engravings, well executed, 
are scarcely inferior to those of copper or 
steel, and for many purposes they are pre¬ 
ferred. They are especially convenient, 
in that they can be inserted into a page 
of types, where illustrations or embellish¬ 
ments may be required, and be printed 
without separate expense. They will also 

P 







170 


THE ENGRAVER. 


bear a great number of impressions,—gen¬ 
erally 100,000. In this respect, they are 
decidedly superior to metallic plates. 
They can likewise be multiplied indefi¬ 
nitely, by the process of stereotyping. 


THE COPPERPLATE ENGRAVER. 

1. The engravers on metallic surfaces 
are termed copperplate engravers, not be¬ 
cause copper is the only metal on which 
they exert their skill, but because it is the 
one on which they usually operate. The 
plates are prepared for the artists by the 
coppersmith, by rubbing them with brick- 
dust and charcoal, after having cut them 
of a proper size from sheets of copper. 

2. The instruments employed by this 
artist are few and simple: the principal 
ones are, the graver , the dry-point , the 
scraper , and the burnisher. The graver 
is a small bar of steel, of a square or 
lozenge form, and, with the short handle 
mto which it is inserted, about five inches 
in length. One of the angles of the bar 
is always on the under side of the instru¬ 
ment, and the point is formed by bevelling 
the end from the upper side, or angle. 
The square form is used for broad strokes, 
and the lozenge for fine ones. 

3. The dry-point , or needle, is a steel 
wire with a long cylindrical handle, or it 
is sometimes of sufficient length and size 
to be used without a handle. The scraper 
has nearly the form of a triangular pyra¬ 
mid ; and the cutting part, which has three 
edges, is two or three inches long. The 
burnisher has a form nearly conical; and, 
without the handle, is about three inches 
long. The last two instruments are fre¬ 
quently made of the same piece of steel, one 
being forged at each end. In such case, 
the middle part of the steel is the handle 
by which they are held. 


4. Of engraving on copper, the follow¬ 
ing are the principal varieties or styles:— 
1. Line engraving; 2. Stippling; 3. Etch¬ 
ing ; 4. Mezzotinto; 5. Aquatinta. For 
the purpose of conveying some idea of 
these different branches, we will describe 
them under distinct heads. 

5. Line engraving. The first thing 
done, in this species of engraving, is to 
transfer to the plate an exact copy of the 
outlines of the design to be executed. In 
accomplishing this, the plate is moderate¬ 
ly heated, and covered with a thin coating 
of white wax. A piece of transparent 
paper is then laid over the design to be 
copied, and traced in outline with a black- 
lead pencil. The outline thus sketched 
is turned down upon the coating of white 
wax, and the whole is subjected to the ac¬ 
tion of a rolling-press, or is kept for a 
while under heavy weights. By the ap¬ 
plication of this pressure, the lines are 
transferred from the paper to the wax on 
the plate in a reversed position, which is 
necessary to make the impression of the 
finished plate resemble the original. 

6. The pencil marks on the wax having 
been lightly traced on the copper with the 
dry-point, and the wax having been melted 
off', a perfect outline is found on the plate. 
Small subordinate parts of the design are 
transferred to the plate in the same man¬ 
ner, except that the transparent paper is 
brought in forcible contact with the wax¬ 
ed surface by means of the burnisher. 

7. At this stage of the process, the artist 
commences the use of the graver. While 
operating with this instrument, he holds 
the handle in the palm of his hand, and 
pushes the point forward with a firm and 
steady-motion, until a line is produced by 
the removal of a portion of the metal. By 
a succession of such strokes, judiciously ap¬ 
plied, the work is completed. The burrs , or 
















THE ENGRAVER. 


171 


little elevations of the copper, left by the 
graver on each side of the lines, are re¬ 
moved by means of the scraper and bur¬ 
nisher. Mistakes or blemishes are erased 
from the plate, either with the burnisher, 
or by friction with charcoal. 

8. Stippling . The second mode of en¬ 
graving is called stippling. This resem¬ 
bles the last method in its process, except 
that the effect is produced by means of 
minute punctures or excavations, instead 
of lines. These are made either with the 
dry-point or graver. When produced by 
the former instrument, they are of a cir¬ 
cular form; when by the latter, they are 
rhomboidal or triangular. This style of 
work is always more slow, and consequent¬ 
ly more expensive, than engraving in lines. 
It has, however, some advantages in the 
softness and delicacy of its lights and 
shades, and the prints struck from it ap¬ 
proach more nearly to paintings. 

9. Etching . This mode of engraving 
is by far more easy than any other, being 
performed chiefly by chemical corrosion. 
In fact, any person who can draw, may 
etch coarse designs tolerably well, after 
having learned the theory of the opera¬ 
tion. To perform it, the plate is first co¬ 
vered with a thin coating of some resin¬ 
ous substance, upon which the acid em¬ 
ployed can have no action. The design, 
and all the lines it requires, are next traced 
on the plate with steel points, called etch¬ 
ing needles , which are instruments simi¬ 
lar to the dry-point. 

10. The second part of the process is 
the corrosion, or, as it is technically call¬ 
ed, biting in. This is effected by pouring 
upon the design a quantity of diluted ni¬ 
tric acid, after having surrounded the edges 
of the plate with a wall of soft wax, to 
prevent the escape of the fluid. A chemi¬ 


cal action immediately takes place in all 
the lines or points where the copper has 
been denuded by the needle. After the 
first biting has been continued long enough, 
in the judgment of the operator, the acid 
is poured off, and the plate examined. 

11. The light shades, if found sufficient¬ 
ly deep, are then covered with varnish, to 
protect them from further corrosion. The 
biting is then continued for the second 
shades, in the same manner, and after¬ 
wards, for the third and succeeding shades, 
until the piece shall have been finished. 
The plate having been cleaned, and care¬ 
fully examined by the aid of a proof im¬ 
pression, the deficiencies which may be 
discovered are supplied with the graver. 

12. Mezzotinto. In the production of 
this kind of engraving, the whole surface 
of the plate is first roughened, or covered 
with minute prominences and excavations 
too small to be obvious to the naked eye ; 
so that an impression taken from it, in this 
state, would present a uniform velvety 
black appearance. This roughness is pro¬ 
duced mechanically by means of a small 
toothed instrument, called a cradle. 

13. When the plate has been thus pre¬ 
pared, the rest of the process is compara¬ 
tively easy. It consists in pressing down 
or rubbing out the roughness of certain 
parts of the plate, with the burnisher and 
scraper. Where strong lights are required, 
the plate is restored to a smooth surface ; 
for a medium light, it is moderately bur¬ 
nished, or partially erased; and, for the 
deepest shades, the ground is left entire, 
and sometimes etched, and corroded with 
nitric acid. The productions of mezzo¬ 
tinto plates approach more nearly to oil 
paintings than any other. This kind of 
engraving was invented by Prince Rupert, 
in 1649. 







172 


THE ENGRAVER. 


14. Aqua-tinta. There are several me¬ 
thods by which this kind of engraving can 
be executed; we, however, will describe 
the one which seems to be the most sim¬ 
ple and obvious. The outline of the pic¬ 
ture having been etched or engraved in 
the usual manner, the surface of the cop¬ 
per is sprinkled equally with minute par¬ 
ticles of rosin. This dust is fixed to the 
surface by heating the plate until the rosin 
lias melted. 

15. The ground having been thus laid, 
the parts of the plates not intended to be 
occupied by the design are stopped out by 
means of thick varnish. The plate is now 
surrounded with a wall of wax, as for 
etching, and diluted nitric acid is poured 
upon it. A chemical action immediately 
takes place, by which the surface exposed 
between the resinous particles is minutely 
excavated. 

16. The lighter shades are stopped out 
at an early stage of the process, and the 
biting in is continued for the darker ones. 
After the plate is judged to be sufficiently 
corroded, it is cleansed, and an impression 
taken on paper. The process is then finish¬ 
ed by burnishing the shades, to give them 
greater softness, and, when necessary, by 
the application of the graver. 

17. This mode of engraving is well 
adapted to light subjects, sketches, land¬ 
scapes, &c.; but, owing to the fineness of 
the ground, the plates wear out rapidly, and 
seldom yield, when of ordinary strength, 
more than six hundred impressions. The 
prints taken from such plates bear a strong 
resemblance to paintings in Indian ink, or 
drawings in black-lead pencil. Aqua-tinta 
■s the most precarious kind of engraving, 


and requires much attention on the part 
of the artist. It was invented by a French¬ 
man, named Leprince, who, for a time, kept 
the process a secret, and sold his impres¬ 
sions for original drawings. 

18. Steel engraving. The process of 
engraving on steel plates differs but little 
in its details from that on copper plates; 
and the chief advantage derived from this 
method, arises from the hardness or tough¬ 
ness of the material, which renders it ca¬ 
pable of yielding a greater number of im¬ 
pressions. 

19. This mode of engraving was first 
practised in England, by the calico-print¬ 
ers ; but steel was first employed for bank¬ 
notes, and for common designs, by Jacob 
Perkins, of Newburyport, Massachusetts; 
and by him, in conjunction with Asa Spen¬ 
cer, of New-London, and Gideon Fairman, 
of Philadelphia, the use of steel in this 
application was generally introduced, not 
only in the United States, but also in Great 
Britain, some time before the year 1820. 

20. The plates are prepared for the 
engraver from sheets of steel about one- 
sixth of an inch in thickness. A plate 
cut from a sheet of this kind is first soft¬ 
ened by heating it with charcoal, and suf¬ 
fering it to cool gradually in the atmo¬ 
sphere. It is next planished , or hammered 
on a peculiar kind of anvil, to make it 
perfectly level, and afterwards ground on 
one side upon a grindstone. The opera¬ 
tion is completed by polishing it with 
Scotch stone and charcoal. When the 
engraving has been completed, the plate 
is not again hardened before impressions 
are taken from it, as was the case when 
steel was first substituted for copper. 












1. The copperplate printer takes im¬ 
pressions on paper from engraved plates 
by means of a rolling press. This machine, 
together with some of the operations in 
its application, are well exhibited in the 
above picture. 

2. The period at which the practice of 
printing from engraved plates commenced 
cannot be ascertained with any degree of 
certainty. The Dutch, the Germans, and 
the Italians, contend for the honour of in¬ 
troducing it; but the weight of testimony 
seems to be in favour of the claims of the 
Italian sculptor and goldsmith, Tommaso 
Finiguera, who flourished at Florence, 
about the middle of the fifteenth century. 

3. It is stated that this artist, accident¬ 
ally spilling some melted brimstone on an 


engraved plate, found, on its removal, an 
exact impression of the engraving, mark¬ 
ed with black, taken out of the strokes. 
This suggested to him the idea of taking 
an impression in ink on paper, by the aid 
of a roller. It is hardly necessary to state, 
that the experiment succeeded. Copper¬ 
plate printing was not used in England 
until about 150 years after its first em¬ 
ployment at Florence, when it was intro¬ 
duced from Antwerp, by Speed. 

4. The ink used in this kind of printing 
is made of a carbonaceous substance, call¬ 
ed Frankfort black, and linseed or nut oil. 
Oil is used, instead of water, that the ink 
may not dry during the process; and it is 
boiled till it has become thick and viscid, 
that it may not spread on the paper. The 


P 2 
































































174 


THE COPPERPLATE-PRINTER. 


materials are incorporated and prepared 
with the stone and muller, as painters pre¬ 
pare their colours. 

5. In taking impressions from an en¬ 
graved plate, it is first placed on an iron 
frame over a heated stove, or over a char¬ 
coal fire in a furnace, and while in this 
position, the ink is spread over it with a 
roller covered with coarse cloth, or with a 
ball or rubber made of the same material, 
and faced with buckskin. The heat ren¬ 
ders the ink so thin that it can penetrate 
the minute excavations of the engraving. 
The plate having been thus sufficiently 
charged, is wiped first with a rag, then 
with the hand, until the ink has been re¬ 
moved from every portion of it, except 
from the lines of the engraving. 

6. The plate is next placed on the plat¬ 
form of the press, with its face upwards, 
and the paper, which has been previously 
dampened, is laid upon it A turn of the 
cylinders, by means of the arms of the 
cross, carries the plate under a strong pres¬ 
sure, by which portions of the paper are 
forced into all the cavities of the engrav¬ 
ing. The ink, or part of it, leaves the plate, 
and adheres to the paper, giving an exact 
representation of the whole work of the 
artist. The roller by which the pressure 
is applied is covered with several thick¬ 
nesses of broad-cloth. 

7. The number of good impressions 
yielded by engraved copperplates, depends 
upon various circumstances, but chiefly on 
the fineness and depth of the work; and 
these qualities depend mainly upon the 
style in which it has been executed. Line 


engravings will admit of four or five thou¬ 
sand, and, after having been retouched, a 
considerable number more. 

8. Plates of steel will yield near ten 
times as many good impressions as those 
of copper, and this too without being hard¬ 
ened. Besides, an engraving on steel may 
be transferred to a softened steel cylinder, 
in such a manner that the lines may 
stand in relief; and this cylinder, after 
having been hardened, may be brought 
in forcible contact with another plate, and 
thus the design may be multiplied at plea¬ 
sure. 

9. The bank-note engravers have now 
a great variety of designs and figures on 
steel rollers, which they can easily transfer 
to new plates. This practice, as applied to 
plates for bank-notes, originated with Ja¬ 
cob Perkins. It is supposed that he must 
have been led to it by an English engraver 
in his employ, w T ho may have explained to 
him the manner in which the British calico- 
printers produced engravings on copper 
cylinders. This is not altogether impro¬ 
bable, since the principle in both cases is 
substantially the same. 

10. In consequence of the increased de¬ 
mand for maps and pictorial embellish¬ 
ments in books, as well as for single prints 
as ornaments for rooms, engraving and 
copperplate-printing have become employ¬ 
ments of considerable importance; and 
these arts must doubtless continue to flou¬ 
rish to an indefinite extent, in a country 
where the taste for the fine arts is rapidly 
improving, and where wealth aflords the 
means of liberal patronage. 








THE LITHOGRAPHER. 


1. The word lithography is derived from 
fwo Greek words — lithos , a stone, and 
grapho , to write; and the art to which the 
term is applied has reference to the exe¬ 
cution of letters, figures, and drawings, on 
stone, and taking from them fac-simile im¬ 
pressions. The art is founded on the pro¬ 
perty which stone possesses, of imbibing 
fluids by capillary attraction, and on the 
chemical repulsion which oil and water 
have for each other. 

2. Every kind of calcareous stone is 
capable of being used for lithography. 
Those, however, which are of a compact, 
fine, and equal grain, are best adapted to 
the purpose. The quarries of Solenhofen, 
near Pappenheim, in Bavaria, furnished the 
first plates, and none have yet been found 
in any other place, to equal them in 


quality; although some that answer the 
purpose tolerably well, have been taken 
from quarries in France and England. 

3. In preparing the stones for use, they 
are first ground to a level surface, by rub¬ 
bing two of them face to face, sand and 
water being interposed. Then, if they 
are designed for ink drawings, they are 
polished with pumice-stone ; but, if for 
chalk drawings , with fine sand, which 
produces a grained surface adapted to 
holding the chalk. 

4. When stones of proper size and tex¬ 
ture cannot be conveniently obtained, slabs 
are sometimes constructed of lime and sand, 
and united with the caseous part of milk. 
The first part of the process which may be 
considered as belonging peculiarly to the 
art, consists in making the drawing on the 





























































































176 


THE LITHOGRAPHER. 


stone. This is done either in ink, with 
steel pens and camel’s hair pencils, or with 
crayons made of lithographic chalk. The 
process of drawing on stone differs but little 
from that on paper, with similar means. 

5. For lithographic ink, a great number 
of receipts have been given; but the most 
approved composition consists of equal 
parts of wax, tallow, shell-lac, and com¬ 
mon soap, with a small proportion of lamp¬ 
black. Lithographic chalk is usually com¬ 
posed of the same materials, combined in 
different proportions. 

6. When the drawing has been finish¬ 
ed, the lithographic printer prepares it for 
giving impressions, by using upon its sur¬ 
face a weak solution of acid and other in¬ 
gredients, which corrode the surface of 
the stone, except where it is defended 
from its action by the grease of the chalk 
or ink. As soon as the stone has been suf¬ 
ficiently eaten away, the solution is re¬ 
moved by the application of spirits of 
turpentine and water. 

7 The ink employed in this kind of 
printing, is similar in its composition to 
other kinds of printing ink. It is applied 
to the drawing by means of a small wood¬ 
en cylinder covered with leather. The 
paper, which has been suitably dampened, 
is laid upon the stone, and after it has 
been covered, by turning down upon it a 
thick piece of leather stretched upon an 
iron frame, a crank is turned which brings 
the stone successively under the press. 

8. An impression of the drawing having 
been thus communicated to the paper, the 
sheet is removed, and the process is re¬ 
peated, until the proposed number of prints 
have been taken. Before each application 
of the ink, the whole face of the stone is 
moderately wet with water, by means of 
a sponge; and although the roller passes 
over the whole surface of the stone, yet 


the ink adheres to no part of it, except 
to that which is covered with the draw¬ 
ing. 

9. The number of impresions which 
may be taken from chalk drawings, varies 
according to their fineness. A fine draw- 
ing will give fifteen hundred; a coarse one, 
twice that number. Ink drawings and 
writings give considerably more than cop¬ 
perplates; the finest yielding six or eight 
thousand, and strong lines and writings 
many more. 

10. Impressions from engravings can be 
multiplied indefinitely, with very little trou¬ 
ble, in the following manner. A print is 
taken in the usual way from the engraved 
plate, and immediately laid with its face 
upon water. When sufficiently wet, it is 
carefully applied to the face of a stone, and 
pressed down upon it by the application of 
a roller, until the ink is transferred to the 
stone. Impressions are then taken in the 
manner before described. 

11. The invention of lithography is as¬ 
cribed to Aloys Senifelder, the son of a 
performer at the theatre of Munich. Hav¬ 
ing become an author, and being too poor 
to publish his works in the usual way, he 
tried many plans, with copperplates and 
compositions, in order to be his own print¬ 
er. A trial on stone, which had been ac¬ 
cidentally suggested, succeeded. His first 
essays to print for publication, were some 
pieces of music, executed in 1796. 

12. The first productions of the art were 
rude, and of little promise; but, since 1806, 
its progress has been so rapid, that it now 
gives employment to a great number of 
artists; and works are produced, which 
rival the finest engravings, and even sur¬ 
pass them in the expression of certain sub¬ 
jects. The earliest date of the art in the 
United States, is 1826, w T hen a press was es¬ 
tablished at Boston, by William Pendleton. 














THE AUTHOR. 


1. The word author, in a general sense, 
is used to express the originator or efficient 
cause of a thing; but in the restricted 
sense in which it is applied in this article, 
it signifies the first writer of a book, or a 
writer in general. The indispensable 
qualifications to make a writer are—a 
talent for literary composition, an accurate 
Knowledge of language, and an acquaint¬ 
ance with the subject to be treated. 

2. Very few persons are educated with 
the view to their becoming authors. They 
generally write on subjects pertaining to 
the profession or business in which they 
have been practically engaged: a clergy¬ 
man writes on divinity, a physician on me¬ 
dicine, a lawyer on jurisprudence, a teach¬ 
er on education, and a mechanic on his 
particular trade. There are subjects, how- 

23 


ever, which occupy common ground, on 
which individuals of various professions 
often write. 

3. Authorship is founded upon the in¬ 
vention of letters, and the art of comoining 
them into words. In the earliest ages of 
the world, the increase of knowledge was 
opposed by many formidable obstacles. 
Tradition was the first means of transmit¬ 
ting information to posterity; and this, de¬ 
pending upon the memory and will of in¬ 
dividuals, was exceedingly precarious. 

4. The chief adventitious aids in the 
perpetuation of the memory of facts by 
tradition, were the erection of monuments, 
the periodical celebration of days or years, 
the use of poetry, and finally symbolical 
drawings and hieroglyphical sketches. 
Nevertheless, history must have remained 














































































178 


THE AUTHOR. 


uncertain and fabulous, and science in a 
state of perpetual infancy, had it not been 
for the invention of written characters. 

5. The credit of the invention of letters 
was claimed by the Egyptians, Phoeni¬ 
cians, and Jews, as well as by some other 
nations: but as their origin preceded all 
authentic history not inspired, and as the 
book of inspiration is silent in regard to it, 
no satisfactory conclusion can be formed 
on this point. Some antiquarians are of 
opinion, that the strongest claims are pre¬ 
sented by the Phoenicians. 

6. The Pentateuch embraces the earli¬ 
est specimen of phonetic or alphabetic 
writing now extant, and this was written 
about 1500 years before Christ. Many 
persons suppose, that, as the Deity him¬ 
self inscribed the ten commandments on 
the two tables of stone, he taught Moses 
the use of letters; and on this supposition 
is founded the claim of the Jewish nation 
to the honour of the first human applica¬ 
tion of them. 

7. If we may believe Pliny, sixteen 
characters of the alphabet were introduced 
into Greece by Cadmus, the Phoenician, in 
the days of Moses ; four more were add¬ 
ed by Palamedes during the Trojan war, 
and four afterwards, by Simonides. Alpha¬ 
betical writing evidently sprung from suc¬ 
cessive improvements in the hieroglyphi- 
cal system, since a great part of the latter 
has been lately discovered to be syllabic 
or alphabetic. 

8. A considerable number of very an¬ 
cient alphabets still exist on the monu¬ 
mental remains of some of the first post¬ 
diluvian cities, and several of later date, 
in manuscripts which have descended to 
our times. The letters employed in dif¬ 
ferent languages have ever been subject 
to great changes in their conformation. 
This was especially the case before the 


introduction of the art of printing, which 
has contributed greatly towards perma¬ 
nency in this respect. 

9. The mode of arranging the letters 
in writing has, also, varied considerably. 
Some nations have written in perpendicu¬ 
lar lines, as the Chinese and ancient Egyp¬ 
tians ; others from right to left, as the 
Jews; and others again alternately from 
left to right, as was the method at one 
period among the Greeks. The mode of 
writing from left to right now generally 
practised, is preferable to any other, since 
it leaves uncovered that portion of the 
page upon which writing has been made. 

10. In ancient times, literary produc¬ 
tions were considered public property; 
and consequently, as soon as a work was 
published, transcribers assumed the right 
to multiply copies at pleasure, without 
making the authors the least remunera¬ 
tion. They, however, were sometimes re¬ 
warded with great liberality, by princes or 
wealthy patrons. This literary piracy con¬ 
tinued, until a long time after the introduc¬ 
tion of the art of printing. 

11. In almost every kingdom of Europe, 
and in the United States, the exclusive 
right of authors to publish their own pro¬ 
ductions, is now secured to them by law, 
at least for a specified number of years. 
The first legislative proceeding on this 
subject in England, took place in 1662, 
when the publication of any book was pro¬ 
hibited, except through the permission of 
the lord chamberlain. The title of the 
book, and the name of the proprietor, were, 
also, required to be entered in the record 
of the stationers’ company. 

12. This and some subsequent acts 
having been repealed in 1691, literary 
property was left to the protection of the 
common law, by which the amount of 
damages which could be proved to have 














THE AUTHOR. 


179 


actually occurred in case of infringement, 
could be recovered, and no more. New 
applications were, therefore, made to par¬ 
liament ; and, in 1709, a statute was pass¬ 
ed, by which the property of copyright 
was guarded for fourteen years, with se¬ 
vere penalties. This privilege was con¬ 
nected with the condition, that a copy of 
the work be deposited in nine public libra¬ 
ries specified in the act. 

13. In 1774, the parliament decided 
that at the end of fourteen years the copy¬ 
right might be renewed, in case the author 
were still living. The law continued on 
this footing until 1814, when the contin¬ 
gency with regard to the last fourteen 
years was removed, and, if the author still 
survived, the privilege of publication was 
extended to the close of his life. 

14. In the United States, the jurisdic¬ 
tion of this subject is vested by the con¬ 
stitution in the federal government; and, 
in 1790, a law was passed by Congress, 
securing to the authors of books, charts, 
maps, engravings, &c., being citizens of 
the United States or resident therein, pri¬ 
vileges like hose granted in England in 
1774. In 1831, the law was altered, and 
again made to conform to that of England 
in regard to the period of the privileges. 
The English and American law differ in 
no essential provision, except that in the 
former, no distinction is made between 
citizens and foreigners. 

15. In France, the first statute regard¬ 
ing literary property was passed in 1793, 
when the right of authors to their works 


was secured to them during their lives, and 
to their heirs for ten years after their de¬ 
cease. The decree of 1810 extended the 
right of the heirs to twenty years. In 
Russia, the period of copyright is the same 
as in France, and the property is not liable 
for the payment of the author’s debts. 

16. In some of the German States, the 
right is given for the life-time of the au¬ 
thor ; in others, it is made perpetual, like 
any other property; but then the work 
may be printed with impunity in any of 
the other states in which a right has not 
been secured. In Germany and Italy, es¬ 
pecially, authors are very poorly remune¬ 
rated; and in Spain, the book trade has 
been so much oppressed by a merciless 
censorship, that authors are compelled to 
publish their works on their own account. 

17. From the preceding statement it 
appears, that few legislators have been 
willing to place the productions of intel¬ 
lectual labour on the same honourable foot¬ 
ing with other kinds of property. No rea¬ 
son, however, can be assigned for the dis¬ 
tinction, except the unjust and piratical 
usage of two or three thousand years. 

18. Authors seldom publish their own 
works. They generally find it expedient, 
and, in fact, necessary, to intrust this part 
of the business to booksellers and publish¬ 
ers, from whom they usually receive a 
specified amount for the entire copyright, 
or a certain sum for each and every copy 
which may be sold during the term of 
years which may be agreed upon. 






1. From what has been said in a pre¬ 
ceding article, it is manifest that the art 
of printing arose from the practice ot en¬ 
graving on wood. Letters were cut on 
wood as inscriptions to pictures, and were 
printed at the same time with them, by 
means of a hand-roller. The impressions 
were taken on one side of the paper; and, 
in order to hide the nakedness of the blank 
side, two leaves were pasted together. 
These leaves were put up in pamphlet 
form, and are now known under the de¬ 
nomination of block-books , because they 
were printed from wooden blocks. 

2. Although the art of typographical 
printing can be clearly traced to wood en¬ 
graving, yet so much uncertainty rests 
upon its history, that the honour of its in¬ 
vention is claimed by three cities—Har¬ 


lem, in Holland, and Strasburgand Mmtz, 
in Germany; and, at the present time, it 
is difficult to determine satisfactorily the 
merits of their respective claims. The 
obscurity on this point has arisen from the 
desire of the first printers to conceal the 
process of the art, that their productions 
might pass for manuscripts, and that they 
might enjoy the full benefit of their inven¬ 
tion. 

3. The advocates of the claims of Har¬ 
lem state, that Laurentius Coster applied 
wooden types, and some say, even metal 
types, as early as 1428, and that several 
persons were employed by him in the busi¬ 
ness up to the year 1440, when his mate¬ 
rials were stolen from him by one of his 
workmen or servants, named John, while 
the family were engaged in celebrating 

















































THE PRINTER. 


181 


the festival of Christmas eve. The thief 
is said to have fled first to Amsterdam, 
then to Cologne, and finally to have settled 
in Mentz, where, within a twelvemonth, 
he published two small works, by means 
of the types which Laurentius Coster had 
used. 

4. These claims in favour of Harlem, 
however, were not set forth until 120 years 
after the death of Coster; and the whole 
story, as then stated by Hadriamus Junius, 
was founded altogether upon traditionary 
testimony. Perhaps wood engravings, with 
inscriptions, may have been executed 
there; if so, the account may have origin¬ 
ated from that circumstance. 

5. The statements which seem to be 
the most worthy of credit, bestow the 
honour of this invention on a citizen of 
Mentz. Here, it appears that John Geins- 
fleisch, or Guttemburg, senior, published 
two small works for schools, in 1442, on 
wooden types; but, not having the funds 
necessary to carry on the business, he ap¬ 
plied to John Faust, a rich goldsmith, who 
became a partner in 1443, and advanced 
the requisite means. Soon afterwards, 
J. Meidenbachius and some others were 
admitted as partners. 

6. In the following year, John Guttem¬ 
burg, the brother of Geinsfleisch, made an 
addition to the firm. For several years 
before this union, or from 1436, Guttem¬ 
burg had been attempting to perfect the 
art at Strasburg; but it is said that he had 
never been able to produce a clean printed 
sheet. The brothers may or may not have 
pursued their experiments without receiv¬ 
ing any hints from each other, before their 
union at Mentz. 

7. Soon after the formation of this part¬ 
nership, the two brothers commenced cut¬ 
ting metal types , for the purpose of print¬ 
ing an edition of the Bible; which was 


published in Latin, about the year 1450. 
Before this great achievement of the art 
had been effected, Geinsfleisch appears to 
have retired from the concern, some say 
on account of blindness. 

8. The partnership before mentioned 
was dissolved in 1450, and Faust and Gut¬ 
temburg entered into a new arrangement, 
the former supplying money, the latter 
personal services, for their mutual benefit; 
but various difficulties having arisen, this 
partnership was also dissolved in 1455, 
after a law-suit between them, which was 
decided against Guttemburg. 

9. Faust, having obtained possession of 
the printing materials, entered into part¬ 
nership with Peter Shceffer, who had been 
for a long time a servant or workman in 
the printing establishment. In 1457, they 
published an edition of the Psalter , which 
was then considered uncommonly elegant. 
This book was, in a great measure, the 
work of Guttemburg, since, during the 
four years in which it was in the press, 
he was for two years and a half the chief 
operator in the printing-office. 

10. Guttemburg, by the pecuniary aid 
of Conrad Humery and others, established 
another press in Mentz, and, in 1460, pub¬ 
lished the “ Catholicon Joannis Januen - 
sis.” It was a very handsome work, but 
not equal in beauty to the Psalter of Faust 
and Shceffer. The latter was the first 
printed book known to have a genuine 
date. From this time, it has been the prac¬ 
tice for printers to claim their own pro¬ 
ductions, by prefixing to them their names. 

11. Notwithstanding the great advance¬ 
ment which had been made in the art of 
printing, the invention cannot, by any 
means, be considered complete, until about 
the year 1458, when Peter Shceffer con¬ 
trived a method of casting types in a ma¬ 
trix or mould. The first book executed 

Q 




182 


THE PRINTER. 


with cast metal types was called “ Duran- 
di Ralionale Divinorum OJjiciorum ,” pub¬ 
lished in 1459. Only the smaller letters, 
however, were of this description, all the 
larger characters which occur being cut 
types. These continued to be used, more 
or less, as late as the year 1490. 

12. In 1462, Faust carried to Paris a 
number of Latin Bibles, which he and 
Shceffer had printed, and disposed of many 
of them as manuscripts. At first, he sold 
them at five or six hundred crowns, the 
sums usually obtained by the scribes. He 
afterwards lowered the price to sixty. 
This created universal astonishment; but 
when he produced them according to the 
demand, and when he had reduced the 
price to thirty, all Paris became agitated. 

13. The uniformity of the copies in¬ 
creased the wonder of the Parisians, and 
information was finally given to the police 
against him as a magician. He was ac¬ 
cordingly arrested, and a great number of 
his Bibles were seized. The red ink with 
which they were embellished, was sup¬ 
posed to be his blood. It was seriously 
adjudged that the prisoner was joined in 
league with the devil; and had he not dis¬ 
closed the secret of his art, he would pro¬ 
bably have shared the fate of those whom 
the magistrates of those superstitious times 
condemned for witchcraft. 

14. It may be well to inform the reader, 
that, although the story of Faust’s arrest, 
as above detailed, is related as a fact by 
several authors, yet by others it is thought 
to be unworthy of credit. It is also gene¬ 
rally supposed that the celebrated romance 
of “ Doctor Faustus and the devil” origin¬ 
ated in the malice of the monks towards 
Faust, whose employment of printing de¬ 
prived them of their gain as copiers. It 
seems more probable, however, that it 
arose from the astonishing performances 


of Doctor John Faust, a dealer in the black 
art, who lived in Germany in the begin¬ 
ning of the sixteenth century. 

15. Faust and Shceffer continued their 
printing operations together, at least until 
1466, about which time it is conjectured 
that the former died of the plague at Paris. 
Geinsfleisch, or, as he is sometimes called, 
Guttemburg, senior, died in 1462; and his 
brother Guttemburg, junior, in 1468, after 
having enjoyed for three years the privi¬ 
leges of nobility, which, together with a 
pension, had been conferred upon him by 
Archbishop Adolphus, in consideration of 
his great services to mankind. 

16. More copies of the earliest printed 
books were impressed on vellum than on 
paper; but the method w r as soon reversed, 
and paper was used for a principal part of 
the edition, while a few only were printed 
on vellum, as curiosities, and to be orna¬ 
mented by the illuminators, whose inge¬ 
nious art, though in vogue before and at 
that time, did not long survive the rapid 
improvements in printing. 

17. We are informed that the Mentz 
printers observed the utmost secrecy in 
their operations; and, that the art might 
not be divulged by the persons whom they 
employed, they administered to them an 
oath of fidelity. This appears to have 
been strictly adhered to, until the year 
1462, when the city was taken and plun¬ 
dered by Archbishop Adolphus. Amid 
the consternation which had arisen from 
this event, the workmen spread themselves 
in different directions; and, considering 
their oath no longer obligatory, they soon 
divulged the secret, which was rapidly 
diffused throughout Europe. 

18. Some idea may be formed of the 
celerity with which a knowledge of print¬ 
ing was extended, from the fact that the 

I art was received in two hundred and three 










THE PRINTER. 


183 


places prior to the year 1500. It was 
brought to England in 1471, by William 
Caxton, a mercer of the city of London, 
who had spent many years in Germany 
and Holland. The place of the first loca¬ 
tion of his press was Westminster Abbey. 
The first press in North America was es¬ 
tablished at Cambridge, Massachusetts, in 
1639. 

19. Printed newspapers had their origin 
in Germany. They first appeared in Augs¬ 
burg and Vienna, in 1524. They were 
originally without date or place of impres¬ 
sion, nor were they published at regular 
periods. The first German paper with 
numbered sheets was printed in 1612; and 
from this time must be dated periodical 
publications in that part of Europe. 

20. In England, the first newspaper ap¬ 
peared during the reign of Elizabeth. It 
originated in a desire to communicate in¬ 
formation in regard to the expected inva¬ 
sion by the Spanish armada, and was enti¬ 
tled the “English Mercury,” which, by 
authority, was printed at London by Chris¬ 
topher Barker, her highness’s printer, in 
1588 

21. These, however, were extraordina¬ 
ry gazettes, not regularly published. Pe¬ 
riodicals seem to have been first extensive¬ 
ly used by the English, during the civil 
wars in the time of the Commonwealth. 
The number of newspapers in Great Britain 
and Ireland amounted, in 1829, to 325, and 
the sums paid to the government for stamps 
and duties on advertisements, amounted to 
about .£678,000 sterling. 

22. No newspaper appeared in the Bri¬ 
tish colonies of America until 1704, when 
the “News Letter” was issued at Boston. 
The first paper published in Philadelphia, 
was issued in 1719; the first in New-York, 
in 1733. In 1775, there were 37; and in 


1801, there were, in the whole United 
States, 203; in 1810, 358; at the present 
time, there are about 1200, and the num¬ 
ber is annually increasing. 

23. The first periodical paper of France 
originated with Renaudot, a physician in 
Paris, who, for a long time, had been in 
the habit of collecting news, which he 
communicated verbally to his patients, with 
the view to their amusement. But, in 
1631, he commenced the publication of a 
weekly sheet, called the “Gazette de 
France,” which was continued with very 
little interruption until 1827. There are 
now, probably, in France, about 400 period¬ 
ical publications, most of which have been 
established since the commencement of 
the revolution of 1792. 

24. Periodicals devoted to different ob¬ 
jects have been established in every other 
kingdom of Europe; but, in many cases, 
they are trammelled by a strict censorship 
of the respective governments. This is 
especially the case with those devoted to 
politics or religion. But all Europe, with 
its 190,000,000 of inhabitants, does not 
support as many regular publications as 
the United States, with its 13,000,000. 

25. The workmen employed in a print¬ 
ing-office are of two kinds:— compositors , 
who arrange the types according to the 
copy delivered to them; and pressmen , 
who apply ink on the types, and take off 
impressions. In many cases, and especial¬ 
ly where the business is carried on upon a 
small scale, the workmen often practise 
both branches. 

26. Before the types are applied to use, 
they are placed in the* cells or compart¬ 
ments of a wooden receptacle called a 
case , each species of letter, character, or 
space, by itself. The letters which are 
required most frequently are lodged in the 







184 


THE PRINTER. 


largest compartments, which are located 
nearest to the place where the compositor 
stands while arranging the types. 

27. The compositor is furnished with a 
composing-stick , which is commonly an 
iron instrument, surrounded on three sides 
with ledges a little less than half an inch 
in height, one of which is moveable, so 
that it may be adjusted to any length of 
line. The compositor, in the performance 
of his work, selects the letters from their 
several compartments, and arranges them 
in an inverted order from that in which 
they are to appear in the printed page. 

28. At the end of each word is placed 
a quadrat , to produce a space between 
that and the one which follows. The 
quadrats are of various widths, and being 
considerably shorter than types, they yield 
no impression in printing. A thin brass 
rule is placed in the stick, on which each 
successive line of types is arranged. When 
the composing-stick has been filled, it is 
emptied into the galley , which is a flat 
board, partly surrounded with a rim. 

29. On this galley, the lines are accu¬ 
mulated in long columns, which are after¬ 
wards divided into pages, and tied together 
with a string, to prevent the types from fall¬ 
ing asunder, or into pi , as the printers 
term it. A sufficient number of pages hav¬ 
ing been completed to constitute a form, 
or, in other words, to fill one side of a sheet 
of printing-paper, they are arranged on an 
imposing-stone , and strongly locked up, or 
wedged together, in an iron chase. 

30. The first impression taken from the 
types is called the proof. This is careful¬ 
ly read over by the author or proof-reader, 
or both, and the errors and corrections 
plainly marked in the margin. These 
corrections having been made by the com¬ 
positor, the form is again locked up, and 
delivered to the pressman. 


31. The pressman having dampened his 
paper with water, and put every part of 
his press in order, takes impressions in the 
following manner:—he places the sheet 
upon the tympan , and confines it there by 
turning down upon it the frisket; he then 
brings them both, together with the pa¬ 
per, upon the form, which has been pre¬ 
viously inked. He next turns a crank 
with his left hand, and thereby places the 
form directly under the platen , which is 
immediately brought in a perpendicular 
direction upon the types, by means of a 
lever pulled with his right hand. 

32. After the impression has been thus 
communicated, the form is returned to its 
former position, and the printed sheet is 
removed. The operation as just described 
is repeated for each side of every sheet of 
the edition. In the cut at the head of this 
article, the pressman is represented as in 
the act of turning down the frisket upon 
the tympan. The business of the boy be¬ 
hind the press is to apply the ink to the 
types, by means of the rollers before him. 

33. Within the present century, great 
improvements have been made in the print¬ 
ing business generally, and especially in 
the presses, and in the means of applying 
the ink. In the old Ramage press, the 
power was derived from a screw which 
was moved by a lever; but in those by 
several late inventors, from an accumula¬ 
tion of levers. 

34. In 1814, printing by machinery was 
commenced in London, and rollers became 
necessary for inking the forms. These 
were made of molasses, glue, and tar, in 
proportions to suit the temperature of the 
weather. From these originated compo¬ 
sition balls in the following year, and in 
1819, hand rollers. Formerly the ink was 
applied by means of pelt balls stuffed with 
wool. 











THE TYPE-FOUNDER. 


1. The types cast by the type-founder 
are oblong square pieces of metal, each 
having on one end of it a letter or charac¬ 
ter in relief. The metal of which these 
important instruments are composed is 
commonly an alloy consisting essentially 
of lead and antimony, in the proportion of 
about five parts of the former to one of the 
latter. This alloy melts at a low temper¬ 
ature, and receives and retains with accu¬ 
racy the shape of the mould. Several 
hundred pounds of type-metal are prepared 
at a time, and cast into bars filled with 
notches, that they may be easily broken 
into pieces, when about to be applied to 
use. 

2. In making types, the letter or charac- jj 
ter is first formed, by means of gravers and jj 
other tools, on the end of a steel punch, jj 


With this instrument a matrix is formed, 
by driving it into a piece of copper of suit¬ 
able size. A punch and matrix are re¬ 
quired for every character used in printing. 
A metallic mould for the body of the type 
is also made; and, that the workman may 
handle it without burning his hands, it is 
surrounded with a portion of wood. The 
mould is composed of two parts, which can 
be closed and separated with the greatest 
facility. 

3. The type-metal is prepared for im¬ 
mediate use by melting it, as fast as it may 
be needed, in a small crucible, over a coal 
fire. The caster having placed the ma¬ 
trix in the bottom of the mould, commences 
the operation of casting by pouring the 
metal into the mould with a small ladle. 
This he performs with his right hand. 

Q 2 















































































































































































186 


THE TYPE-FOUNDER. 


while with the other he throws up the 
mould with a sudden jerk; then with both 
hands he opens it and throws out the type. 
All these movements are performed with 
such rapidity, that an expert hand can cast 
about fifty types of a common size in a 
minute. Some machines have been lately 
introduced, which operate with still great¬ 
er rapidity. 

4. Each type, when thrown from the 
mould, has attached to it a superfluous 
portion of metal, called a jet , which is 
afterwards broken off by hand. The jets 
are again cast into the pot or crucible, and 
the types are carried to another room, 
where the two broad sides are rubbed on 
a grindstone. They are next arranged on 
flat sticks about three feet long, and de¬ 
livered to the dresser , who scrapes the two 
sides not before made smooth on the grind¬ 
stone, cuts a grove on the end opposite 
the letter, and rejects from the row the 
types which may be defective. 

5. The wnole process is completed by 
setting up the types in a printer’s com¬ 
posing-stick, and tying them up with pack¬ 
thread. Much of the work in the type 
foundry is performed by boys and females. 
In the preceding cut are represented a 
man casting types at a furnace, and a boy 
breaking off the jets; also two females 
rubbing types on a large grindstone. The 
fumes arising from melted lead in the cast¬ 
ing-room are considered deleterious to 
health. 

6. Various sizes of the same kind of 
letter are extensively used, of which the 
following are most employed in printing 
books—Pica, Small Pica, Long Primer, 
Bourgeois, Brevier, Minion, Nonpareil, 
Pearl, and Diamond. A full assortment 
of any particular size is called a fount , 
which may consist of any amount, from 
five pounds to five hundred, or more. The 


master type-founder usually supplies the 
printer with all the materials of his art, 
embracing not only types, leads, brass 
rules, and ordinary ornaments, but also 
cases, composing-stick, galleys, printing- 
presses, and other articles too numerous to 
be mentioned. 

7. The inventor of the art of casting 
types was Peter Shceffer, first servant or 
workman employed by Guttemburg and 
Faust. He privately cut a matrix for each 
letter of the alphabet, and cast a quantity 
of the types. Having shown the products 
of his ingenuity to Faust, the latter was 
so much delighted with the contrivance, 
that he made him a partner in the print¬ 
ing business, and gave him his only daugh¬ 
ter, Christina, in marriage. 

8. The character first employed was a 
rude old gothic, mixed with secretary, de¬ 
signed on purpose to imitate the hand¬ 
writing of those times, and the first used 
in England were of this kind. To these 
succeeded what is termed old English , 
or black letter, which is still occasionally 
applied to some purposes; but Roman let¬ 
ter is now the national character not only 
of England, but of France, Spain, Portu¬ 
gal, and Italy. In Germany, and in the 
States surrounding the Baltic, letters are 
used which owe their foundation to the 
gothic, although works are occasionally 
printed for the learned in Roman. 

9. The Roman letter owes its origin to 
the nation whence it derives its name; 
although the faces of the present and an¬ 
cient Roman letters differ materially, on 
account of the improvements which they 
have undergone at various times. For 
the invention of the Italic character, we 
are indebted to Aldus Manutius, who set 
up a printing-office in Venice in 1496, 
where he also introduced Roman types of 
a neater cut. 









1 The word stereotype is derived from 
two Greek works— stereos , solid, and tupos , 
a type. It is applied to pages of types in 
a single piece, which have been cast in 
moulds formed on common printing types 
or w'ood cuts. They are composed of lead 
and antimony, in the proportion of about 
six parts of the former to one of the latter. 
Sometimes a little tin is added. 

2. The types are set up by compositors , 
as usual in printing, and imposed or locked 
up, one or several pages together, in an 
iron chase of a suitable size. Having been 
sent to the casting-room , the types are 
slightly oiled, and surrounded with a frame 
of brass or type-metal. They are then 
covered with a thin mixture of finely pul¬ 
verized plaster, and water. In about ten 


minutes, the plaster becomes hard enough 
to be removed. 

3. The mould, thus formed, having been 
baked in an oven, is placed in an iron pan 
of an oblong shape, and sunk into a kettle 
of the melted composition above mention¬ 
ed, which is admitted at the four corners 
of the cover to the cavities of the mould 
beneath. The pan is then raised from the 
kettle, and placed over water. When the 
metal has become cool, the contents of the 
pan are removed, and the plaster is broken 
and washed from the plate. 

4. As fast as the pages are cast, they 
are sent to the Jinishing-room,. Here they 
are first planed on the back with a ma¬ 
chine, for the purpose of making them 
level and of an equal thickness. The let- 











































































































































188 


THE STEREOTYPER. 


ters are then examined, and, when defi¬ 
cient, are rendered perfect by little steel 
instruments called picks. Corrections and 
alterations are made by cutting out original 
lines, and inserting common printing types, 
or lines stereotyped for the purpose. The 
types are cut off close to the back with 
pincers, and fastened to the place with 
solder. The plates, when they are fin¬ 
ished, are about one-sixth of an inch in 
thickness. 

5. When all the pages of a work have 
been completed, they are packed in boxes, 
which are marked with certain letters of 
the alphabet, to indicate the form or pages 
which they contain. While the pages are 
being applied in printing, they are fasten¬ 
ed to blocks of solid wood, which, with the 
plates, are intended to be the same in 
height with common types. 

6. The first stereotype plates were cast 
by J. Van der Mey, a Dutchman, who re¬ 
sided at Leyden about the year 1700. A 
quarto and folio Bible, and two or three 
small works, were printed from pages of 
his casting; but at his death, the art ap¬ 
pears to have been lost, although the plates 
of these two Bibles are still extant, the 
former at Leyden, and the latter at Am¬ 
sterdam. 

7. In 1725, William Ged, of Edinburgh, 
without knowing what had been done in 
Holland by Van der Mey, began to make 
stereotype plates. But being unable to 
prosecute the business alone for want of 
funds, he united in partnership with three 
others. One of the partners being a type¬ 
founder, supposing that success in the 
enterprise would injure his business, em¬ 
ployed men to compose and print the pro¬ 
posed works in a manner that he thought 
most likely to spoil them. 


8. Accordingly, the compositors, while 
correcting one error in the proof, made 
intentionally several more; and the press¬ 
men battered the letter, while printing the 
books. By these dishonest and malicious 
proceedings, the useful enterprise of Mr. 
Ged was defeated. He, however, after¬ 
wards printed, in an accurate manner, two 
or three works. The first of these was a 
Sallust, the pages of which were set up 
by his son, James Ged, who was but an 
apprentice to the printing-business. This 
part of the work was performed in the 
night, when the workmen were absent 
from the office. 

9. After the death of Mr. Ged, no atten¬ 
tion was paid to the art, and a knowledge 
of it was lost at the decease of his son, 
which took place about the year 1771; but 
it was a third time invented by Alexander 
Tilloch, Esq., who, in conjunction with 
Mr. Foulis, printer to the University of 
Glasgow, made many experiments, until 
plates were produced yielding impressions 
which could not be distinguished from those 
of the types from which they had been 
cast. But owing to circumstances uncon¬ 
nected with the real utility of the art, the 
business was not prosecuted to a great ex¬ 
tent. 

10. About the year 1804, the art was 
again revived by the late Earl Stanhope, 
assisted by Mr. A. Wilson, a printer, who 
turned his whole attention that way. In 
their efforts to complete the invention, 
they were assisted by Messrs. Tilloch and 
Foulis; and although they succeeded, after 
many experiments, they were strenuously 
opposed in their efforts to introduce the 
practice, the printers supposing, perhaps 
with some reason, that it would prove in¬ 
jurious to their business. 







THE PAPER-MAKER, AND THE BOOKBINDER. 


THE PAPER-MAKER. 

1. The materials on which writing was 
executed, in the early days of the art, were 
the leaves and bark of trees and plants, 
stones, bricks, sheets of lead, copper, and 
brass, as well as plates of ivory, wooden 
tablets, and cotton and linen cloth. 

2. The instruments with which writing 
was practised were adapted to the sub¬ 
stance on which it was to be formed. The 
stylus , which the Romans employed in 
writing on metallic tablets covered with 
wax, was made of iron, acute at one end, 
for forming the letters, and flat or round 
at the other, for erasing what may have 
been erroneously written. 

3. For writing with ink, the calamus , a 
kind of reed, sharpened at the point, and 
cplit like our pens, was used. Some of I 


the eastern nations still write with bam¬ 
boos and canes. The Chinese inscribe 
their characters with small brushes similar 
to camel’s hair pencils. We have no cer¬ 
tain evidence of the application of quills 
to this purpose until the seventh century. 

4. As the literature of antiquity ad¬ 
vanced, a material adapted to works of 
magnitude became necessary, and this was 
found both in the skins of animals, and in 
the celebrated plant papyrus, of Egypt; 
but the time when they were first applied 
to this purpose cannot be determined, 
although it is probable that the former has 
the preference as regards priority. 

5. The papyrus was an aquatic plant, 
which grew upon the banks of the Nile. 
In the manufacture of paper from this reed, 
it was divested of its outer covering, and 




























































































































190 


THE PAPER-MAKER 


the internal layers or laminae were sepa¬ 
rated with the point of a needle or knife. 
These layers were spread parallel to each 
other on a table, in sufficient numbers to 
form a sheet; a second laver was then laid 
with the strips crossing those of the first 
at right angles: and the whole having 
been moistened with water, was subjected 
to pressure between metallic surfaces. 
The pressure, aided by a glutinous sub¬ 
stance in the plant, caused the several 
pieces to become one uniform sheet. 

6. Parchment was manufactured from 
the skins of sheep and goats. In the pre¬ 
paration, these were first steeped in water 
impregnated with lime, and afterwards j 
stretched upon frames, and reduced by 
scraping with sharp instruments. They 
were finished by the application of chalk, 
and by rubbing them with pumice-stone. 
The skins of very young calves, dressed 
in a similar manner, was called vellum. 
Parchment and vellum are still used for 
deeds and other important documents. 

7. When Attalus, about 200 years be¬ 
fore Christ, was about to found a library 
at Pergamus, which should rival that of 
Alexandria, one of the Ptolemies, then 
king of Egypt, jealous of his success, pro¬ 
hibited the exportation of papyrus; but 
the spirited inhabitants of Pergamus man¬ 
ufactured parchment as a substitute, and 
formed their library principally of manu¬ 
scripts on this material. From this fact, 
it received the name of Pergamena among 
the Romans, who gave it also the appella¬ 
tion of Membrana. 

8. The greatest quantity of paper 'was 
manufactured at Alexandria, and the com¬ 
merce in this article greatly increased the 
wealth of that city. In the fifth century, 
paper was rendered very dear by taxation; 
and this probably was an inducement for 
an effort to produce a substitute. Accord¬ 


ingly, in the eighth century, it began to 
be superseded by cotton paper, although it 
continued in use in some parts of Europe 
until three hundred years after the period 
last mentioned. 

9. The manufacture of cotton paper was 
introduced into Spain in the eleventh cen¬ 
tury by the Arabians, who became ac¬ 
quainted with it in Bucharia as early as 
A. D. 704. About the year 1300, it was 
commenced in Italy, France, and Germa¬ 
ny ; and in some of the paper-mills of these 
countries, paper was first made from cot¬ 
ton rags. Proper linen paper is thought 
to have originated in Germany, about the 
year 1318. 

10. The first paper-mill in England was 
erected by a German, named Spillman, in 
1588; but no paper, except the coarse 
brown sorts, was made in that country until 
about the year 1690: the finer kinds, both 
for writing and printing, were, before that 
time, imported from the continent But 
the paper of English manufacture will now 
compare with that of any other country. 
The French also make very fine paper. 

11. In the United States, this manufac¬ 
ture has rapidly increased in amount with¬ 
in a few years. According to an estimate 
made in 1829, it appears that the whole 
annual product of the mills is worth be¬ 
tween five and seven millions of dollars, 
and that the rags collected in this country 
amount to about two millions. The num¬ 
ber of hands employed in the business is 
ten or eleven thousand, of whom about 
one-half are females. 

12. Nature has supplied us with a great 
variety of substances from which paper 
may be fabricated, as flax, hemp, cotton, 
straw, grass, and the bark of several kinds 
of trees; but the fibres of the three first 
productions, in the form of rags, are the 
most usual materials. Most of these are 










THE PAPER-MAKER. 


191 


primarily purchased from the people at 
large, by retail booksellers, country mer¬ 
chants, and pedlars, who in turn dispose 
of them to persons called rag-merchants, 
or directly to the paper-makers. When 
the rags come from the original collectors, 
all kinds are mixed together, but they are 
assorted according to their colour and the 
nature of their original fibre, either by the 
rag-merchants, or by the paper-makers 
themselves. 

13. In our attempts to afford the reader 
an idea of this manufacture in general, 
letter-paper has been selected, as affording 
the best means of illustration; since for 
this kind of paper, the best stock is em¬ 
ployed, and the greatest skill is exerted in 
every stage of the process. 

14. The process of the manufacture is 
commenced by cutting the rags into small 
pieces, by the aid of a sharp instrument, 
commonly a piece of a scythe, which is 
placed in a position nearly perpendicular 
before the operator. In the reduction of 
very coarse rags, such as sail-cloth, a cut¬ 
ting machine is also employed. Then, 
with the view of sifting out the loose par¬ 
ticles of dirt, the rags are deposited in a 
large octagonal sieve made of coarse wire, 
and placed in a close box in a horizontal 
position. The sieve is moved by machine¬ 
ry, like the bolt of a flour-mill. 

15. The second stage of the process 
consists chiefly in the reduction of the rags 
to a pulp. This is effected by the action 
of a cutting machine, the essential parts 
of which are two sets of blunt knives, the 
one stationary, and the other revolving. 
The machine is placed in a large elliptical 
tub, in which the rags are also deposited, 
with a suitable quantity of water. The 
liquid and fibrous contents of the tub are 
kept moving in a circle by the action of 


the machine, through which it passes at 
one point of its revolution. 

16. The maceration occupies from ten 
to twenty hours, according as the material 
is more or less rigid; and, during part of 
this time, water is permitted to run in at 
one side of the tub, and out at the other, 
to render the pulp perfectly clean. To 
wards the close of this process, the pulp, 
if necessary, is bleached by means of 
chloride of lime, and oil of vitriol. It is 
also sometimes coloured by adding a quan 
tity of dye stuff. The bleaching and co¬ 
louring are effected without interrupting 
the action of the machine. The rags hav¬ 
ing been thus reduced, the pulp, together 
with a suitable quantity of water, is let 
out into a reservoir, from which it is drawn 
off into a vat , as fast as it may be needed 
for the production of paper. 

17. With this vat is connected the pa¬ 
per-making machine; and the part of the 
latter which first comes in contact with 
the material is a hollow cylinder, surround¬ 
ed with a fine web of wire-cloth. This 
cylinder being immersed in the contents 
of the vat more than one-half of its diam¬ 
eter, the water passes off with a uniform 
rapidity, and the fibrous particles which 
had been suspended in it, settle with re¬ 
markable uniformity on the outside of the 
brazen web. As the cylinder revolves, a 
continued sheet is produced, which is taken 
up by an endless web of woollen cloth, and 
carried round another cylinder of equal 
diameter, and then between two more, by 
which it is partially pressed. 

18. From between these rollers, the pa¬ 
per passes out, in a continued sheet, upon 
a large cylindrical reel, called the lay-boy; 
and when a certain quantity of it, which 
i3 determined by a gauge, has been accu¬ 
mulated, the lay-boy is removed to a low 






192 


THE PAPER-MAKER 


table. The paper is then cut, with a 
toothless handsaw, into sheets twice the 
size of letter-paper. This part of the opera¬ 
tion is very quickly performed, as a work¬ 
man can cut up and pile in heaps, to be 
pressed, twenty reams in half that number 
of minutes, and attend to the machine at 
the same time. 

19. After the paper has been successive¬ 
ly pressed and handled by separating the 
sheets, two or three times, it is hung up 
on small poles in an airy room, to be dried; 
and having been again pressed, it is sized 
by holding a quantity of the sheets at a 
time in a thin solution of glue and alum, 
the former of which is prepared in the pa¬ 
per-mill for the purpose, from shreds and 
parings of raw hides. The pape r is freed 
from superfluous portions of the size, by 
submitting it to the action of a press. It 
is again dried as before, and again press¬ 
ed; after which, the several sheets are 
examined, and freed from lumps and other 
extraneous substances. 

20. They are then severed in half with 
a cutting machine, and afterwards calen¬ 
dered, by passing the sheets successively 
between rollers; or they are pressed be¬ 
tween smooth pasteboards. In the latter 
case, hot metallic plates are sometimes in¬ 
terposed between every few quires of the 
sheets. The paper, when treated in this 
way, is called hot-pressed. It is next 
counted off into half-quires, put up into 
reams, pressed, trimmed, and finally en¬ 
veloped in two thick sheets of paper, which 
completes the whole process of the manu¬ 
facture. 

21. The manufacture of paper, as just 
described, seems to be a tedious process; 
yet with two machines and a suitable num¬ 
ber of hands, say sixty or eighty, three 
hundred reams of letter-paper can be pro¬ 
duced from the raw material in a single 


day. It is hardly necessary to remark, 
that paper is of various qualities, from the 
finest bank-note paper, down to the coarsest 
kinds employed in wrapping up merchan¬ 
dise ; and that, for every quality, suitable 
materials are chosen: the process of the 
manufacture is varied, of course, to suit 
the materials. None but writing and 
drawing paper requires to be sized. 

22. Until after the beginning of the pre¬ 
sent century, paper was made exclusively 
by hand , and this method is still continued 
in a majority of the mills in the United 
States, although it is rapidly going out of 
use. It differs from that just described 
chiefly in the manner of collecting the 
pulp to form the paper, this being effected 
by means of a mould , a frame of wood with 
a fine wire bottom, of the size of the pro¬ 
posed sheet. In the use of this instru¬ 
ment, a quantity of the pulp is taken up, 
and while the vatman , or dipper , holds 
it in a horizontal position, and gives it a 
gentle shaking, the water runs out through 
the interstices of the wire, and leaves the 
fibrous particles upon the mould in the 
form of a sheet. The sheets thus produced 
are pressed between felts, and afterwards 
treated as if they had been formed by 
means of a machine. 

23. The first idea of forming paper in 
a continued sheet originated in France; 
but a machine for this purpose is said to 
have been first made completely success¬ 
ful in England, by Henry and Sealy Four- 
drinier. Many machines made after their 
model, as well as those of a different con¬ 
struction, are in use in the United States; 
to some of which is attached an apparatus 
for drying and pressing the paper before 
it is wound upon the lay-boy. Very few 
machines, however, yield paper equal in 
firmness and tenacity to that produced by 
hand. 













THE BOOKBINDER. 


193 


THE BOOKBINDER. 

1. Bookbinding is the art of arranging 
the pages of a book in proper order, and 
confining them there by means of thread, 
glue, paste, pasteboard, and leather. 

2. This art is probably as ancient as 
that of writing books; for, whatever may 
have been the substance on which the 
work was executed, some method of unit¬ 
ing the parts was absolutely necessary. 
The earliest method with which we are 
acquainted, is that of gluing the sheets 
together, and rolling them upon small cy¬ 
linders. This mode is still practised in 
some countries. It is also everywhere used 
by the Jews, so far as relates to one copy 
of their law deposited in each of their 
synagogues. 

3. The name Egyptian is applied to this 
kind of binding, and this would seem to 
indicate the place of its origin. Each 
volume had two rollers, so that the con¬ 
tinued sheet could be wound from one to 
the other at pleasure. The square, or pre¬ 
sent form of binding, is also of great an¬ 
tiquity, as it is supposed to have been in¬ 
vented at Pergamus, about 200 years be¬ 
fore Christ, by king Attalus, who, with his 
son Eumenes, established the famous libra¬ 
ry in that city. 

4. The first process of binding books 
consists in folding the sheets according to 
the paging. This is done by the aid of an 
ivory knife called a folder, and the opera¬ 
tor is guided in the correct performance 
of the work by certain letters called sig¬ 
natures, placed at the bottom of the page, 
at regular intervals through the book. 

5. Piles of the folded sheets are then 
placed on a long table in the order of their 
signatures, and gathered, one from each 
pile, for every book. They are next beaten 
on a stone, or passed between steel rollers, 
to render them smooth and solid. The 

25 


latter method has been introduced within 
a few years. This operation certainly in¬ 
creases the intrinsic value of the book; 
but it is not employed in every case, since 
it is attended with some additional ex¬ 
pense, and since it diminishes the thick¬ 
ness of the book, and consequently its value 
-fl the estimation of the public at large. 

6. The sheets, having been properly 
pressed, are next sewed together upon lit¬ 
tle cords, which, in this application, are 
called bands. During the operation, these 
are stretched in a perpendicular direction, 
at suitable distances from each other, as 
exhibited in the foregoing cut. The fold¬ 
ed sheets are usually notched on the back 
by means of a saw, and at these points 
they are brought in juxta-position with the 
bands. After the pages of several volumes 
have been accumulated, the bands are 
severed between each book. The folding, 
gathering, and sewing, are usually per¬ 
formed by females. 

7. At this stage of the process, the books 
are received by the men or boys, wlie 
generally take on one hundred at a time. 
The workman first spreads some glue on 
the back of each book with a brush. He 
then places them, one after the other, be¬ 
tween boards of solid wood, and beats them 
on the back with a hammer. By this 
means the back is rounded, and a groove 
formed on each side for the admission of 
one edge of the pasteboards. 

8. These having been applied, and par¬ 
tially fastened by means of the bands, 
which had been left long for the purpose, 
the books are pressed, and the leaves of 
which they are composed are trimmed 
with an instrument called a plough. The 
pasteboards are also cut to the proper size 
by the same means, or with a huge pair 
of shears. In the preceding picture, a 
workman is represented at work with the 

R 












194 


THE BOOKBINDER. 


plough. The edges are next sprinkled 
with some kind of colouring matter, or 
covered with gold leaf. A strip of paper 
is then glued on the back, and a head-band 
put upon each end. 

9. The book is now ready to be cover¬ 
ed. This is either done with calf, sheep, 
or goat skin, or some kind of paper or 
cloth; but whatever the material may be, 
it is cut into pieces to suit the size of the 
book; and, having been smeared on one 
side with paste, it is drawn over the out¬ 
sides of the pasteboards, and doubled in 
upon the inside. 

10. The covers, if calf or sheep ski.), 
are next sprinkled or marbled. The first 
operation is performed by dipping the brush 
in a kind of dye, made for the purpose, and 
beating it with one hand over a stick held 
in the other; the second is performed in 
the same manner, with the difference that 
they are sprinkled first with water, and 
then with the colouring matter. 

11. After a small piece of morocco has 
been pasted on the back, on which the 
title is to be printed in gold leaf, and one 
of the waste leaves has been pasted down 
on the inside of each of the covers, the 
books are pressed for the last time. They 
are then glazed by applying the white of 
an egg with a sponge. 

12. The books are now ready for the 
reception of the ornaments, which consist 
chiefly of letters and other figures in gold 
leaf. In executing this part of the pro¬ 
cess, the workman cuts the gold into suit¬ 
able strips or squares, on a cushion. 

13. These are laid upon the books by 
means of a piece of raw cotton, and after¬ 
wards impressed with types moderately 
heated over a charcoal fire; or the strips 
of gold are taken up, and laid upon the pro¬ 


per place with instruments called stamps 
and rolls, which have on them figures in 
relief. The portion of the leaf not im¬ 
pressed with the figures on the 'tools, is 
easily removed with a silk rag. The 
books are finished by applying to the co¬ 
vers the white of an egg, and rubbing 
them with a heated steel polisher. 

14. The process of binding books, as 
just described, is varied, of course, in some 
particulars, to suit the different kinds of 
binding and finish. A book stitched to¬ 
gether like a common almanac is called a 
pamphlet. Those which are covered on 
the back and sides with leather, are said 
to be full-bound; and those which have 
their backs covered with leather, and the 
sides with paper, half-bound. 

15. The different sizes of books are ex¬ 
pressed by terms indicative of the number 
of pages printed on one side of a sheet of 
paper: thus, when two pages are printed 
on one side, the book is termed a folio; 
four pages, a quarto; eight pages, an oc¬ 
tavo ; twelve pages, a duodecimo; eighteen 
pages, an octodecimo. All of these terms, 
except the first, are abridged by prefixing 
a figure or figures to the last syllable, 
thus, 4to. for quarto, 8vo. for octavo, 12mo. 
for duodecimo, &c. 

16. The manufacture of account-books, 
and other blank or stationary work, con¬ 
stitutes an extensive branch of the book¬ 
binder’s business. It is not necessary, 
however, to be particular in noticing it, as 
the general process is similar to that of 
common bookbinding. Those binders who 
devote much attention to this branch of 
the trade, have a machine by which paper 
is ruled to suit any method of keeping 
books, or any other pattern which may be 
desired. 











1. The book trade has arisen from small i 
beginnings to its present magnitude and 
importance. Before the invention of ty¬ 
pography, it was carried on by the aid of 
transcribers; and the booksellers of Greece, 
Rome, and Alexandria, during the flourish¬ 
ing state of their literature, kept a large 
number of manuscript copyists in constant 
employ.* Among the Romans, the trans¬ 
cribers or copyists were chiefly slaves, who 
were very valuable to their owners, on 
account of their capacity for this employ- 

• 

ment. 

2. In the middle ages, when learning ; 
was chiefly confined to the precincts of 
monastic institutions, the monks employed 
much of their time in copying the ancient 
classics and other works; and this labour 
was often imposed upon them as a penance ( 


[ for the commission of sin. From this cause, 
and from an ignorance of the true mean¬ 
ing of the author, much of their copying 
was inaccurately performed, so that great 
pains have been since required in the cor¬ 
rection of the manuscripts of those times. 

3. This mode of multiplying copies of 
books was exceedingly slow, and, withal, 
so very expensive, that learning was con¬ 
fined almost exclusively to people of rank, 
and the lower orders were only rescued 
from total ignorance by the reflected light 
of their superiors. For a long time, during 
the reign of comparative barbarism in 
Europe, books were so scarce, that a pre¬ 
sent of a single copy to a religious house 
was thought to be so valuable a gift, that 
it entitled the donor to the prayers of the 
community, which were considered effica- 



















































































196 


THE BOOKSELLER* 


cious in procuring for him eternal salva¬ 
tion. 

4. After the establishment of the uni¬ 
versities of Paris and Bologna, there were 
dealers in books, called stationarii , who 
loaned single manuscripts at high prices; 
and, in the former place, no person, after 
the year 1432, could deal in books in any 
way, without permission from the univer¬ 
sity, by which officers were appointed to 
examine the manuscripts, and fix the price 
for which they might be sold or hired out. 

5. For a long time after the invention 
of printing, the printers sold their own 
publications; and in doing this, especially 
at some distance from their establishments, 
they were aided by those who had former¬ 
ly been employed as copyists. Some of 
these travelling agents at length became 
stationary, and procured the publication of 
works on their own account. 

6. The first bookseller who purchased 
manuscripts from the authors, and caused 
them to be printed without owning a press 
himself, was John Otto, of Nuremburg. 
He commenced this mode of doing busi¬ 
ness in 1516. in 1545, there were, for 
the first time, two such booksellers in 
Leipsic. The great mart for the sale of 
their books was Frankfort on the Maine, 
where were held three extensive fairs 
every year. Leipsic, however, soon be¬ 
came, and still continues, the centre of the 
German book trade. 

7. The first Leipsic catalogue of books 
appeared' as early as the year 1600; but 
the fairs at that place did not become im¬ 
portant, as regards the book trade, until 
1667, when it was attended by nineteen 
foreign booksellers. The booksellers of 
Germany, as well as some from distant 
countries, meet at the semi-annual fairs 
held in that city, to dispose of books, and 
io settle their accounts with each other. 


Every German publisher has also an agent 
there, who receives his publications, and 
sends them, according as they are ordered, 
to any part of Germany. 

8. In no other part of the world, has 
such a connexion of booksellers been 
formed, although almost every kingdom 
of Europe has some city or cities in which 
this branch of trade is chiefly concentra¬ 
ted; as London, in England; Edinburgh, 
in Scotland; and Amsterdam, Utrecht, 
Leyden, and Haerlem, in the Nether¬ 
lands. In Spain and Portugal, the price 
of every book is regulated by the govern¬ 
ment. 

9. A very convenient method of effect¬ 
ing the sale and exchange of books among 
booksellers, has been adopted in the Unit¬ 
ed States; and this is by auction. A sale 
of this kind is held in Boston once, and in 
New-York and Philadelphia twice, every 
year; and none are invited to attend it 
but the trade; hence such sales are de¬ 
nominated trade sales. 

10. The sale is usually conducted by 
an auctioneer who has been selected by 
a committee of the trade in the city in 
which it is to be held. In order to obtair 
a sufficient amount of stock for the pur 
pose, the agent issues proposals, in which 
he informs publishers and others concern¬ 
ed in this branch of business, of his in¬ 
tention, and solicits invoices of books, to 
be sold at the time specified. A catalogue 
of all the books thus sent for sale, is 
printed and distributed among the book¬ 
sellers. 

11. The booksellers having assembled, 
the books which may have been accumu¬ 
lated from different parts of the Union are 
offered in convenient lots, and struck ojf 
to the highest bidder. Each purchaser 
holds in his hand the printed catalogue, 
on the broad margin of which he marks. 






THE BOOKSELLER. 


197 


if he see fit, the prices at which the 
books have been sold; and the record thus 
kept affords a tolerable means of determ¬ 
ining 1 their value, for a considerable time 
afterwards. 

12. A sale of this kind occupies from 
two to four days; and, at the close of it, 
a settlement takes place, in which the 
parties are governed by the terms pre¬ 
viously published. The payments are 
made in cash or by notes at four or six 
months, according to the amount which 
the purchaser may have bought out of 
one invoice. The conductors of the sale 
are allowed between four and five per 
cent, commission for their services. 

13. A vast number of books is also sold, 
every year, at auction, to miscellaneous 
collections of people, not only in the 
cities and considerable towns, but like¬ 
wise in the villages throughout the coun¬ 
try. By many booksellers, this method of 
sale is thought to be injurious to the 
trade, since it has reduced the prices of 
books, and interfered with the regular 
metnod of doing business. These disad¬ 
vantages, however, have been far overbal¬ 
anced by the increased number of readers 
which has been thus created. 

14. The circulation of books is like¬ 
wise promoted by means of travelling 
agents, who either sell them at once, or 
obtain subscriptions for them with the 
view to their future delivery. These 
methods have been employed more or less 
from the very commencement of the 
printing business; and they have probably 
contributed more to the general extension 


of knowledge than the sale of books by 
stationary booksellers. In fact, they are 
among the most prominent causes of the 
vast trade in books, which is now carried 
on, especially in the United States. 

15. Nevertheless, publishers, who do 
not employ agents to vend their books, 
generally consider them interlopers upon 
their business; and the people themselves 
who owe a great share of their intellec¬ 
tual cultivation to this useful class of men, 
are generally averse to afford them the 
necessary patronage, because they require 
a small advance on the city prices to pay 
travelling expences. 

16. A considerable amount of books is 
also sold by merchants who reside at some 
distance from the cities and large towns. 
They, however, seldom venture to pur¬ 
chase those which have not been well 
known and approved in their neighbour¬ 
hood ; and, in a majority of cases, regard 
them as mere subjects of merchandise, 
without taking into consideration the ef¬ 
fects most likely to be produced by these 
silent, but powerful agents, when circula¬ 
ted among their customers. 

17. Some booksellers in Europe confine 
their trade chiefly to particular depart¬ 
ments; such as law, theology, and medi¬ 
cine. Others deal in toy-books, and books 
of education, or in rare and scarce books. 
This is the case, to a limited extent, in 
the United States, although our booksell¬ 
ers commonly keep an assortment of mis¬ 
cellaneous publications, as well as various 
articles in the stationary line—such as 
paper, quills, inkstands, and blank work. 


R 2 










THE ARC 


1. Architecture, in the general sense 

of the word, is the planning and erecting 
bnildings of all kinds, whether of a pub¬ 
lic or private nature; and it embraces 
within its operations a variety of employ¬ 
ments, at the head of which must be 
placed the Architect. Architecture is of 
several kinds, such as civil , naval , milita¬ 
ry , and aquatic; but it is the first only 
ciiat we propose to notice in the present 
article. • 

2. The construction of buildings as 
means of shelter from the weather, ap¬ 
pears to have been among the earliest in¬ 
ventions ; and, from the skiil exhibited in 
the construction of the ark, we have rea¬ 
son to believe that architecture had been 
brought to considerable perfection before 
the deluge. This opinion is also support- 


HITECT. 


! ed by the fact stated in holy writ, that the 
descendants of Noah, not more than one 
hundred years after the great catastrophe 
just mentioned, attempted to build a city 
and a lofty tower with bricks burned in 
the fire. This project could never have 
been thought of, had they not been influ¬ 
enced by the knowledge of former centu¬ 
ries. 

3. The confusion of the language of 
the people caused their dispersion into 
different parts of the earth; and, in their 
several locations, they adopted that meth¬ 
od of constructing their dwellings, which 
the climate required, and the materials at 
hand admitted; but, whatever the primi¬ 
tive structure may have been, it was con¬ 
tinued, in its general features, from age 
1 to age, by the more refined and opulen: 








































































THE ARCHITECT. 


199 


inhabitants; hence the different styles of 
building-, which have been continued, 
with various modifications, to the present 
day. 

4. The essential elementary parts of a 
building are those which contribute to its 
support, inclosure, and covering; and of 
these the most important are the founda¬ 
tion, the column, the wall, the lintel, the 
arch, the vault, the dome, and the roof. 
Ornamental and refined architecture is 
one of the fine arts; nevertheless, every 
part of an edifice must appear to have 
utility for its object, and show the purpose 
for which it has been designed. 

5. The foundation is usually a stone 
wall, on which the superstructure of the 
building rests. The most solid basis on 
which it is placed is rock, or gravel which 
has never been disturbed; next to these 
are clay and sand. In loose or muddy 
situations, it is always unsafe to build, 
unless a solid basis can be artificially pro¬ 
duced. This is often done by means of 
timber placed in a horizontal position, or 
by driving wooden piles perpendicularly 
into the earth; on a foundation of the 
latter description, the greater part of the 
city of Amsterdam has been built. 

6. The column , or pillar , is the sim¬ 
plest member of a building, although it is 
not essential to all. It is not employed 
for the purpose of inclosure, but as a sup¬ 
port to some part of the superstructure, 
and the principal force which it has to 
resist is that of perpendicular pressure. 
The column is more frequently employed 
in public than in private buildings. 

7. The wall may be considered the la¬ 
teral continuation of the column, answer¬ 
ing the purposes both of support and in¬ 
closure. It is constructed of various ma¬ 
terials, but chiefly of brick, stone, and 
marble, with a suitable proportion of mor¬ 


tar or cement. Walls are also made of 
wood, by first erecting a frame of timber 
and then covering it with boards: but 
these are more perishable materials, 
which require to be defended from the 
decomposing influence of the atmosphere, 
by paint, or some other substance. 

8. The lintel is a beam extending in a 
right line from one column or wall to 
another over a vacant space. The floor 
is a lateral continuation or connexion of 
beams, by means of a covering of planks. 
The strength of the lintel, and, in fact, 
every other elementary part of a building 
used as a support, can be mathematically 
determined by the skilful architect 

9. The arch answers the same purpose 
as the lintel, although it far exceeds it in 
strength. It is composed of several 
pieces of a wedge-like form, and the 
joints formed by the contact of thin sur¬ 
faces point to a common centre. While 
the arch is being constructed, the mate¬ 
rials are supported by a centring of the 
shape of its internal surface. The upper 
stone of an arch is called the key-stone. 
The supports of an arch are called abut¬ 
ments; and a continuation of arches, an 
arcade. 

10. The vault is the lateral continua¬ 
tion of an arch, and bears the same rela¬ 
tion to it that a wall does to a column. 
The construction of a simple vault is the 
same with that of an arch, and it distributes 
its pressure equally along the walls or 
abutments. A complex or groined vault is 
made by the intersection of two of the 
common kind. The groined vault is much 
used in Gothic architecture. 

11. The dome , or cupola, is a hemisphe¬ 
rical or concave covering to a building or 
a part of it. When built of stone it is 
a very strong kind of structure, even 
more so than the arch, since the tendency 






200 


THE ARCHITECT. 


of the parts to fall is counteracted by 
those above and below, as well as by those 
on each side. During the erection of the 
cupola, no centring is required, as in the 
case of the arch. 

12. The roof is the most common and 
cheap covering to buildings. It is some¬ 
times flat, but most commonly oblique, in 
shape. A roof consisting of two oblique 
sides meeting at the top, is denominated a 
pent roof; that with four oblique sides, a 
hipped roof; and that with two sides, 
having each two inclinations of different 
obliquities, a curb or mansard roof. In 1 
modern times, roofs are constructed of j 
wood, or of wood covered with some in- j 
combustible material, such as tiles, slate, | 
and sheets of lead, tin, or copper. The j 
elementary parts of buildings, as just 1 
described, are more or less applicable in 
almost every kind of architecture. 

13. The architecture of different coun¬ 
tries has been characterized by peculiari¬ 
ties of form and construction, which, 
among ancient nations, were so distinct, 
that their edifices may be identified at 
the present day even in a state of ruin; 
and, although nearly all the buildings of 
antiquity are in a dilapidated state, many 
of them have been restored, in drawings 
and models, by the aid of the fragments 
which remain. 

14. The different stylus of building 
which have been recognized by the archi¬ 
tect of modern times, are, the Egyptian, 
the Chinese, the Grecian, the Roman, the 
Greco-Gothic, the Saracenic, and the Go¬ 
thic. In all these, the pillar, with its ac¬ 
companiments, makes a distinguished fig¬ 
ure. The following picture has therefore 
been introduced by way of explanation. 
The columns are of the Corinthian order 
r »f architecture. 


Cornice. 

• Frieze. 
-Architrave 

"Capital. 



Plinth. 


15. The Egyptian style .—The first in¬ 
habitants of Egypt lived in mounds, cav¬ 
erns, and houses of mud ; and from these 
primitive structures, the Egyptians, at a 
later period, derived their style of archi¬ 
tecture. The walls of their buildings were 
very thick, and sloping on the outside; the 
roof was flat, and composed of blocks of 
stone, extending from one wall or pillar to 
another; and the columns were short and 
large, being sometimes ten or twelve feet 
in diameter. Pyramids of prodigious mag¬ 
nitude, and obelisks composed of a single 
stone, sometimes often exceeding seventy 
feet in height, are structures peculiarly 
Egyptian. The architecture of the Hin¬ 
doos seems to have been derived from 
primitive structures of a similar charac¬ 
ter. 













































THE ARCHITECT. 


201 



16. The Chinese style. The ancient 
Tartars, and other wandering tribes of 
Asia, appear to have lived in tents; and 
the Chinese buildings, even at the present 
day, bear a strong resemblance to these 
original habitations, since their roofs are 
concave on the upper side, as if made of 
canvas instead of wood. Their porticoes 
resemble the awnings spread out on our 
shop-windows in the summer. The Chi¬ 
nese build chiefly of wood, although they 
sometimes use brick and stone. 



17. The Grecian style. This style of 
building had its origin in the wooden hut 
or cabin, the frame of which primarily 
consisted of perpendicular posts, transverse 
beams, and rafters. This structure was 
at length imitated in stone, and by degrees 
it was so modified and decorated in certain 
parts, as to give rise to the several distinc¬ 
tions called orders of architecture. The | 

26 


Greeks, in perfecting their system of ar¬ 
chitecture, were probably aided by Egyp¬ 
tian examples, although they finally sur¬ 
passed all other nations in this important 
art. 

18. Orders of architecture. By the 
architectural orders are understood certain 
modes of proportioning and decorating the 
column and entablature. They were in 
use during the best days of Greece and 
Rome, for a period of six or seven centu¬ 
ries. The Greeks had three orders, call¬ 
ed the Doric , the Ionic , and the Corinth¬ 
ian. These were adopted and modified 
by the Romans, who also added two others, 
called the Tuscan and the Composite. 

19. Doric order. The Doric is the 
oldest and most massive order of the 
Greeks. The column, in the examples at 
Athens, is about six of its diameters in 
height: in those of an earlier date, it is 
but four or five. The temple here adduced 
to illustrate this order was built by Cimon 
son of Miltiades, about the year 450 be¬ 
fore Christ. It is said to be in a state of 
better preservation than any other of the 
ancient Greek edifices at Athens. It will 
be seen that the shafts are fluted , that is, 



cut in semicircular channels, in a longitu¬ 
dinal direction. The United States’ Bank, 
at Philadelphia, is a noble specimen of 
this order. 


The Temple of Theseus. 


20 Ionic order. This order is lighter than 
the Doric, its column being eight or nine 
diameters in height. Its shaft has twen¬ 
ty-four or more flutings, separated from 
| each other by square edges; and its capi- 






































































































202 


THE ARCHITECT. 


tal consists, in part, of two double scrolls, 
called volutes, usually occupying opposite 
sides. These volutes are supposed to 
have been copied from ringlets of hair, 
or from the horns of the god Jupiter Am¬ 
mon. The following example of this order 
consists of three temples, each of which 
was dedicated to a different individual, 
viz. Erectheus, Minerva Polias, and the 
nymph Pandrosus. 



The Erectheum at Athens. 


21. Corinthian order. The Corinthian 
is the lightest and most decorated of all 
the Grecian orders. Its column is usually 
ten diameters in height, and its shaft is 
fluted like that of the Ionic. Its capital 
is shaped like an inverted bell, and was 
covered on the outside with two rows of 
the leaves of the plant acanthus, above 
which are eight pairs of small volutes. It 
is said that this beautiful capital was sug¬ 
gested to the sculptor Callimachus by 
the growth of an acanthus about a basket, 
which had been accidentally left in a gar¬ 
den. 

22. The Greeks sometimes departed so 
far from the strict use of their orders, as 
to employ the statues of slaves, heroes, 
and gods, in the place of columns. A 
specimen of this practice is exhibited in 
the cut illustrative of the Ionic order. 
It belongs to the temple dedicated to 
Pandrosus. 

23. The most remarkable buildings of 
the Greeks were their temples. The body 
of these edifices consisted of a walled cell, 
usually surrounded by one or more rows 


of pillars. Sometimes they had a colon¬ 
nade at one end only, and sometimes at 
both ends. Their form was generally ob¬ 
long, and as the cells were intended as 
places of resort for the priests rather than 
for assemblies of the people, they were 
but imperfectly lighted. Windows were 
seldom employed; and light was admitted 
at the door at one end, or through an open¬ 
ing in the roof. 

24. Grecian architecture is supposed to 
have been at its greatest perfection in the 
days of Pericles and Phidias, when sculp¬ 
ture is admitted to have attained its high¬ 
est excellence. It was distinguished, in 
general, by simplicity of structure, few¬ 
ness of parts, absence of arches, and low¬ 
ness of pediments and roofs. 

25. Roman style. The Romans adopt¬ 
ed the three Grecian orders, with some 
modifications; and also added two others, 
called the Tuscan and Composite. The 
former of these they borrowed from the 
nation whose name it bears, and the latter 
they formed by uniting the embellishments 
of the Doric and the Corinthian. The 
favourite order in Rome and its colonies 
was the Corinthian. Examples of single 
pillars of these orders may be seen at the 
end of this article. 

26. The temples of the Romans gene¬ 
rally bore a strong resemblance to those 
of the Greeks, although they often differed 
from the specimens of that nation in seve¬ 
ral particulars. The stylobate of the lat¬ 
ter was usually a succession of platforms, 
which likewise served the purposes of 
steps, by which the building was approach¬ 
ed on all sides. Among the Romans, it 
was usually an elevated structure, like a 
continued pedestal on three sides, and ac¬ 
cessible in front by means of steps. The 
dome was also very commonly employed 





































THE ARCHITECT 


203 


rather than the pent roof. The following 
is an example of a temple at Rome. 



Temple of Antonius and Faustina. 


27. Greco-Gothic style. After the dis¬ 
memberment of the Roman Empire, the 
practice of erecting new buildings from 
the fragments of old ones became preva¬ 
lent. This gave rise to an irregular style 
of building, which continued in use during 
the dark ages. It consisted of Greek and 
Roman details combined under new forms, 
and piled up into structures wholly unlike 
the original buildings from which the ma¬ 
terials had been taken. Hence the appel¬ 
lations Greco-Gothic and Romanesque 
have been applied to it. The effect of 
this style of building was very imposing, 
especially when columns and arches were 
piled upon each other to a great height. 

28. Saracenic style. This appellation 
has been given to the style of building 
practised by the Moors and Saracens in 
Spain, Egypt, and Turkey. It is distin¬ 
guished, among other things, by an ellip¬ 
tical form of the arch. A similar pecu¬ 
liarity exists in the domes of the oriental 
mosques, which are sometimes large seg¬ 
ments of a sphere, appearing as if inflated; 
and at other times, they are concavo-con¬ 
vex on the outside. Several of these domes 
are* commonly placed upon one building. 


The Minaret is a tall slender tower, pecu¬ 
liar to Turkish architecture. 

29. Gothic style. The Goths, who over¬ 
ran a great part of the Western Empire, 
were not the inventors of the style of ar¬ 
chitecture which bears their name. The 
term was first applied with the view to 
stigmatize the edifices of the middle ages; 
in the construction of which, the purity of 
the antique models had not been regarded. 
The term was at first very extensive in 
its application; but it is now confined 
chiefly to the style of building used in the 
construction of cathedrals, churches, ab¬ 
beys, and similar edifices, which was in¬ 
troduced into various parts of Europe six 
or eight centuries ago. 



Gothic Cathedral at York 


30. The Gothic style is peculiarly and 
strongly marked. Its principles seem to 
have originated in the imitation of groves 
and bowers, under which the Druid priests 
had been accustomed to perform their sa¬ 
cred rites. Its characteristics are, its 
pointed arches, its pinnacles and spires, 
its large buttresses, clustered pillars, vault¬ 
ed roofs, and a general predominance of 
the perpendicular over the horizontal. 

31. The ecclesiastical edifices of this 
style of building are commonly in form of 
a cross, having a tower, lantern, or spire, 
erected at the point of intersection. The 
part of the cross situated towards the west 
is called the nave; the eastern part, the 
choir; and the transverse portion, the 




































































































































\ 


THE ARCHITECT. 


t 


transept. A glance at the following dia¬ 
gram will enable the reader to understand 
the form of the ground-work more fully. 


H 

_ Cm _ 

H 

Nave £ Choir 

◄ 

- oc - 

h 


32. Any high building erected above a 
roof is called a steeple , which, however, is 
distinguished by different appellations, ac¬ 
cording to its form: if it be square topped, 
it is a tower; if long and acute, a spire; 
or if short and light, a lantern. Towers 
of great height in proportion to their diam¬ 
eter are denominated turrets. The walls 
of Gothic churches are supported on the 
outside by lateral projections, called but¬ 
tresses, which extend from the bottom to 
the top, at the corners and between the 
windows. On the top of these are slen¬ 
der pyramidal structures or spires, called 
pinnacles. The summit or upper edge of 


a wall, if straight, is called a par 
indented, a battlement. 

33. Gothic pillars or columns are usual 
ly clustered, appearing as if a number 
were bound together. They are confined 
chiefly to the inside of buildings, and are 
generally employed in sustaining the vaults 
which support the roof. The parts which 
are thrown out of a perpendicular to assist 
in forming these vaults, have received the 
appellation of pendentives. The Gothic 
style of building is more imposing than the 
Grecian; but architects of the present day 
find it difficult to accomplish what was 
achieved by the builders of the middle ages. 

34. In the erection of edifices at the 
present day, the Grecian and Gothic styles 
are chiefly employed, to the exclusion of 
the others, especially in Europe and Ame¬ 
rica. Modern dwelling-houses have ne¬ 
cessarily a style of their own, so far as 
relates to stories, windows, and chimneys; 
and no more of the styles of former ages 
can be applied to them, than what relates 
to the unessential and decorative parts. 


Doric. 


Ionic. Corinthian. Composite. 


Tuscan. 



















































































































1. It is the business of the carpenter to 
cut out and frame large pieces of timber, 
and then to join them together, or fit them 
to brick or stone walls, to constitute them 
the outlines or skeleton of buildings or 
parts of buildings. 

2. The joiner executes the more minute 
parts of the wood-work of edifices, com¬ 
prehending, among other things, the 
floors, window-frames, sashes, doors, man¬ 
tles, &c. Carpentry and joinery, how¬ 
ever, are so nearly allied to each other, 
that they are commonly practised by the 
same individuals; and, in this article, 
they will be treated together. 

3. Carpentry and joinery, as well as all 
other trades connected with building, are 
subservient to the architect, when an in¬ 
dividual of this particular profession has 


been employed; but it most commonly 
happens, that the master-carpenter acts in 
this capacity. This is especially the case 
in the erection of common dwellings, and, 
in fact, of other edifices where nothing 
very splendid is to be attempted. It is to 
be regretted, however, that the profes¬ 
sional architect has not been oftener em¬ 
ployed ; for, had this been the case, a purer 
taste in building would have generally 
prevailed. 

4. Contracts for the erection of build¬ 
ings are often made with the carpenter, 
as master-builder or architect. In such 
cases, it is his business to employ persons 
capable of executing every kind of work 
required on the proposed edifice, from the 
bricklayer and stone-mason to the painter 
and glazier. It not unfrequently happens, 

S 









































































































































































206 


THE CARPENTER. 


however, that the person himself, who 
proposes to erect a building, chooses to 
employ the workmen in the different 
branches. 

5. The constituent parts of buildings 
having been explained in the article on 
architecture, it is unnecessary to enter 
here into minute details on this point; nor 
would a particular description of the va¬ 
rious operations of the carpenter and join¬ 
er be useful to the general reader; since, 
in every place, means are at hand by 
which a general view of this business 
may be obtained by actual inspection. 

6. The carpenter and joiner are guided, 
in the performance of their work, by well 
defined rules, drawn chiefly from the sci¬ 
ence of Geometry, and which they have 
learned from imitation and practice, as 
well as, in many cases, from the valuable 
works which have been published on these 
branches of the art of building. 

7. The principal tools with which they 
operate are the axe, the adz, the saw, the 
auger, the gauge, the square, the com¬ 
passes, the hammer, the mallet, the crow, 
the rule, the level, the maul, and the 
plane; and of many of these there are 
several kinds. 

8. The timber most employed in build¬ 
ing in the United States consists princi¬ 
pally of pine, oak, beech, black walnut, 
cypress, larch, white cedar, and hemlock; 
but of these pine is in the greatest use. 
Oak and beech are much used in con¬ 
structing frames, in which great strength 
is required. Of the pine, there are seve¬ 
ral species, of which the white and yellow 
are the most valuable; the former of these 


grows in the greatest abundance in the 
Northern, and the latter in the Southern, 
states. 

9. Vast quantities of timber are annu¬ 
ally cut into boards in saw-mills, and 
floated down the rivers from the interior 
during the time of high water in the 
spring and fall, and sometimes at other 
seasons of the year. The boards, or 
planks, as they are frequently denomina¬ 
ted, are placed in the water, one tier above 
another, and fastened together with wood¬ 
en pins. Several of such rafts are con¬ 
nected by means of withes to form one; 
and, at each end of this, are placed one or 
two huge oars, with which it may be 
guided down the stream. Upon these 
rafts, shingles and lathes are also brought 
to market. 

10. Logs and scantling to be employed 
in the frames of buildings are also con¬ 
veyed down the rivers in the same man¬ 
ner. The business connected with the 
production of shingles, laths, boards or 
planks, and staves, is called lumbering; 
and it is carried on, more or less exten¬ 
sively, in the regions near the sources of 
all the large rivers in tne United States 
and in the British possessions in North 
America. 

11. The trade in lumber has also given 
rise to another class of men, called lum¬ 
ber merchants; these purchase the lum¬ 
ber from the original proprietors, who 
bring it down the rivers, and, in their 
turn, sell it to builders and others. The 
lumbering business employs a large capi¬ 
tal, and a numerous mass of our citi¬ 
zens. 











THE STONE-MASON, THE BRICKMAKER, &c. 


THE MASON. 

1. The art of Masonry includes the 
sawing and cutting of stones into the va¬ 
rious shapes required in the multiplied 
purposes of building, and in placing them 
in a proper manner in the walls and other 
parts of edifices. It is divided into two 
branches, one of which consists in bring¬ 
ing the stones to the desired form and 
polish ; and the other, in laying them in 
mortar or cement. 

2. The rocks most used in building in 
the United States, are marble, granite, 
greenstone, scienite, soapstone, limestone, 
gypsum, and slate. These are found in a 
great many localities, not only on this con¬ 
tinent, but on the other side of the Atlan¬ 
tic. Of these stones, there are many vari¬ 
eties, which are frequently designated by 


their sensible qualities, or by the name of 
the place or country whence they are ob¬ 
tained ; as variegated , Italian , Egyptian, 
or Stockbridge marble, and Quincy stone. 

3. The Stone-cutter. — Stone-cutters 
procure their materials from the quarry- 
men, whose business it is to get out the 
stones from the quarries, in which they lie 
in beds consisting either of strata piled 
upon each other, or of solid masses. Stones 
of any desirable dimensions are detached 
from the great mass of rock, by first drill¬ 
ing holes at suitable points, and then driv¬ 
ing into them wedges with a sledge. 
These blocks are usually removed from 
the quarries, and placed on vehicles of 
transportation, by means of huge cranes, 
witli which is connected suitable ma¬ 
chinery. 
































































































208 


THE STONE-MASON. 


4. The blocks of stone, received in 
their rough state by the stone-cutter, are 
divided, if required, into pieces of smaller 
size, by means of a toothless saw, aided by 
the attrition of sand and water. The 
other rough sides of the blocks are re¬ 
duced to the proper form by means of steel 
points and chisels driven with a mallet. 
A kind of hammer with a point or chisel¬ 
like edge, is also used to effect the same 
object, especially in the softer kinds of 
stone. 

5. For some purposes, the stones are 
required to be polished. This is especially 
the case with those employed in the orna¬ 
mental parts of buildings. In the execu¬ 
tion of this part of the work, the surface 
is rubbed successively with sand, free¬ 
stone, pumice-stone, Scotch stone, crocus, 
and putty. When the face is a plane, the 
sand is applied by means of another stone, 
which is moved backwards and forwards 
upon it. In this way, two surfaces are 
affected at the same time. 

6. The different kinds of stone are used 
not in a pulverized state, but in masses of 
convenient size; and the part applied to 
the surface to be polished is first brought 
to a form corresponding to it. The putty 
is an oxyde of tin, in form of powder. 
Crocus is the peroxyde of iron. The 
building-stone capable of receiving the 
highest polish is marble; and it is on this 
material that the stone-cutter, and the 
architectural carver or sculptor, exert 
their utmost skill; but some of the other 
stones which have been mentioned, pos¬ 
sess the same quality to a considerable 
extent 

7. Carving architectural ornaments, 
such as pillars with their capitals, is a re¬ 
fined branch of this business; or rather it 
may be considered a branch of sculpture 
itself. In the execution of this kind of 


work, the operator is guided by patterns, 
formed from the well-defined rules of the 
science of building. Very few stone-cut¬ 
ters attempt the execution of work so 
very difficult 

8. From the manufacture of mantel¬ 
pieces and monuments for the dead, the 
stone-cutter derives a great proportion 
of his profits. This will be manifest even 
to the superficial observer who may visit 
a few of the many stone-cutters’ yards, to 
be found in any of our large cities. In 
some of these, blocks of marble are cut 
into slabs by the aid of steam-power. 

9. In districts of country, also, where 
valuable stom is abundant, water is ex¬ 
tensively employed for the same purpose. 
This is especially the case in Berkshire 
county, Massachusetts, where marble of a 
good quality is abundant. A great pro¬ 
portion of the marble slabs used by the 
stone-cutter are obtained from such mills. 
Some other operations of this business are 
also sometimes performed by the aid of 
machinery. 


THE STONE-MASON. 

1. In Philadelphia, and in many other 
cities not only in this country but also in 
Europe, the stone-cutters set their own 
work; and this practice has led to the 
habit of applying the term stone-mason to 
both stone-cutters and those who lay stone 
in mortar and cement. In New-York, 
however, as well as in some of the cities 
farther east, these two employments are 
kept more distinct. The stone-cutters in 
Philadelphia are sometimes denominated 
marble-masons. 

2. But in every city, there are persons 
called stone-masons, whose business con¬ 
sists exclusively in constructing the walls 
and some other parts of buildings with 







THE STONE-MASON. 




stone; and their operations are considera¬ 
bly enlarged in those places where there 
are no narble-masons. In many cases, 
the bricklayer is also so far a stone-mason, 
as to lay the foundation-walls of the build¬ 
ings which he may erect. This is espe¬ 
cially the case in the country, where the 
divisions of labour are not so minute as in 
cities. It may be well to remark, also, 
that the bricklayers, in some places, per¬ 
form the services of the marble-mason. 

3. The marble-mason, in joining togeth¬ 
er several pieces in a monument, employs 
s. kind of cement composed of about six 
parts of lime, one of pure sand, a little plas¬ 
ter, and as much water as may be neces¬ 
sary to form it to the proper consistency. 
No more of this cement is used than is 
required to hold the blocks or parts to¬ 
gether; as one great object of the artist 
is to hide the joints as much as possible. 
The substance thus interposed becomes as 
hard as the marble itself. 

4. The cement employed in laying mar¬ 
ble, in common or large edifices, is some¬ 
what different from that just described, as 
it consists of about three fourths of lime 
and one of sand. The latter substance is 
obtained, in an unmixed state, on the bays 
in every part of the world; hence it has 
received the appellation of bay sand . 

5. When it cannot be conveniently had 
in a pure state, particles of the same kind 
can be separated in sufficient quantities 
from their admixture with other substan¬ 
ces. This is effected by sifting the com¬ 
pound through a sieve, into a small stream 
of water, which carries off the lighter 
particles that are unfit for use, whilst 
the sand, by its superior specific gravity, 
sinks to tne bottom. The part which may 
De too coarse, remains in the sieve. This, 
however, except the rubbish, can be used 
in the coarser kinds of masonry. 

27 


309 

6. The mortar, used in laying bricks 
and common stone, has a greater propor¬ 
tion of sand, which is generally of an in¬ 
ferior quality. Besides, the materials are 
incorporated with less care. Lime for the 
purposes of building is procured chiefly by 
calcining limestone in a kiln, with wood, 
coal, or some other combustible substance 
It is also obtained by burning chalk, mar¬ 
ble, and marine shells. Water poured 
upon newly-burnt or quick lime, causes it 
to swell, and fall to pieces into a fine pow 
der. In this state it is said to be slacked. 

7. Masonry is often required in situa¬ 
tions under water, especially in the con¬ 
struction of bridges and locks of canals. 
Common mortar resists the action of the 
water very well, when it has become per¬ 
fectly dry; yet, if it is immersed before it 
has had time to harden, it dissolves, and 
crumbles away. 

8. The ancient Romans, who practised 
building in the water to a great extent, 
discovered a material, which, when incor¬ 
porated with lime, either with or without 
sand, possessed the property of hardening 
in a few minutes even under water. This 
was a kind of earth found at Puteoli, to 
which was given the name of pulvis pu- 
teolanus , and which is the same now 
called puzzolana. 

9. A substance denominated tarras y ter¬ 
ras , or tras, found near Andernach, in 
the vicinity of the Rhine, possesses the 
same quality with puzzolana. It is this 
material which has been principally em¬ 
ployed by the Dutch, whose aquatic struc¬ 
tures are superior to those of any other 
nation in Europe. Various other substan¬ 
ces, such as baked clay and calcined green 
stone, reduced to powder, afford a tolerable 
material for water cements. 

10. In the construction of buildings 
with marble and other costly stones, th 

S 2 













210 


THE BRICKMAKER. 


walls are not composed of these materials 
in their entire thickness; but, for the sake 
of cheapness, they are formed on the inside 
with bricks, commonly of a poor quality, 
so that in reality they can be considered 
only brick walls faced with stone. These 
two kinds of materials have no other con¬ 
nexion than what is produced by the mor¬ 
tar which may have been interposed, and 
the occasional use of clamps of iron. 
Such walls are said to be liable to become 
convex outwardly from the difference in 
the shrinking of the cement employed in 
laying the two walls. 

11. The principal tools employed in cut¬ 
ting and laying stone are the saw, various 
kinds of steel points, chisels, and hammers, 
the mallet, the square, the compasses, the 
level, the plumb-rule, the trowel, and the 
hod; to which may be added, the spade 
and the hoe. The last three instruments, 
however, are handled almost exclusively 
by labourers. 

12. Besides these, contrivances are re¬ 
quired to raise heavy materials to the va¬ 
rious positions which they are to occupy. 
These consist, for the most part, of one or 
two shafts commonly the mast of an old ves¬ 
sel, to which are attached tackle extend¬ 
ing in various directions, and also those by 
which the blocks are to be raised. The 
rope belonging to the hoisting tackle is 
pulled by a machine worked with a crank. 

13. Masonry is one of the primitive arts, 
and was carried to great perfection in an¬ 
cient times. The pyramids of Egypt are 
supposed to have stood about three thou¬ 
sand years, and they will probably remain 
for centuries to come, monuments as well 
of the folly, as of the power and industry 
of man. The temples and other magnifi¬ 
cent structures of Greece and Rome, ex¬ 
hibit wonderful skill in masonry, and leave 


but little if anything new to be achieved 
in modern times. 


THE BRICKMAKER. 

1. Brick is a sort of artificial stone 
made principally of argillaceous earths 
formed in moulds, dried in the sun, and 
burned with fire. 

2. The earliest historical notice of 
bricks is found in the book of Genesis, 
where it is stated that the posterity of 
Noah undertook to build a city and a 
lofty tower of this material. Whether the 
bricks were really exposed to the action 
of fire, as the passage referred to seems to 
imply, or only dried in the sun, is an un¬ 
settled point. But Herodotus, who visited 
the spot many centuries afterwards, states 
that the bricks in the tower of Babylon 
were baked in furnaces. 

3. It is evident, however, that the earli¬ 
est bricks were commonly hardened in 
the sun; and, to give them the requisite 
degree of tenacity, chopped straw was 
mixed with the clay. The manufacture 
of such bricks was one of the tasks im¬ 
posed upon the Israelites, during their ser¬ 
vitude with the Egyptians. 

4. The extreme dryness and heat of the 
climate in some of the eastern countries, 
rendered the application of fire dispensa¬ 
ble ; and there are structures of unburnt 
bricks still remaining, which were built 
two or three thousand years ago. Bricks 
both sun-dried and burned, were used by 
the Greeks and the Romans. 

5. The walls of Babylon, some of the 
ancient structures of Egypt and Persia, 
the walls of Athens, the rotunda of the 
Pantheon, the temple of Peace, and the 
Therm eb, or baths, at Rome, were all 
built of brick. The most common bricks 
among the Romans were seventeen inches 













THE BRICKMAKER. 


211 


long and eleven broad; a size, certainly, 
far preferable, as regards appearance, to 
those of modern manufacture. 

6. In the United States, a great propor¬ 
tion of the edifices, particularly in the ci¬ 
ties and towns, are constructed of bricks 
which are usually manufactured in the 
vicinity of the place where they are to be 
used. The common clay, of which they 
*u*e made, consists of a mixture of argilla¬ 
ceous earth and sand with a little oxyde 
of iron, which causes them to turn red in 
burning. The material for bricks is dug 
up, and thrown into a large heap, late in 
the fall or in the winter, and exposed to 
the influence of the frost until spring. 

7. The operation of making bricks is 
conducted very systematically; and, al¬ 
though every part of the work seems to 
be very simple, it requires considerable 
dexterity to perform it properly and to the 
best advantage. The workmen in the 
yards about Philadelphia are divided into 
gangs consisting of three men and a boy. 
The first is called the temperer, who tem¬ 
pers the material with water and mixes it 
with a spade; the second is called the 
wheeler, who conveys it on a barrow to a 
table, where it is formed in moulds by the 
moulder, and carried thence to the floor 
by the boy, who is denominated the off- 
hearer. 

8. The bricks are suffered to remain on 
the floor a day or two, or until they have 
become dry enough to be handled with 
safety. They are then removed and piled 
into a hack, under cover, in such a man¬ 
ner that the air may circulate freely be¬ 
tween them. It is the business of the 
whole gang to remove the bricks from the 
floor, and also to place them in the kiln to 
be burned. In both cases, each one has his 
due proportion of labour to be performed. 


9. The day’s work of a gang, when the 
weather is favourable, is to make and pile 
in the hack a tale of bricks, which consists 
of 2332, or an even 2000. The former 
number is called a long tale, and the lat¬ 
ter, a short tale. Considerable skill and 
much care are required in burning the 
bricks in a proper manner; too much fire 
would cause them to vitrify, and too little 
would leave them soft, and unfit for atmo¬ 
spheric exposure. 

10. In many places, the clay is mixed 
or prepared for the moulder by driving 
round upon it a yoke of oxen, or by means 
of a simple machine, consisting of a beam, 
into which has been driven a great num¬ 
ber of spokes. One end of this beam is 
confined in a central position, while the 
other is moved round in a sweep by ani¬ 
mal power. 

11. Machines have also been invented 
by the aid of which the clay may be both 
mixed and moulded; but these have been 
very little used. A machine, however, is 
often employed in pressing bricks which 
have been formed in the usual manner. 
The pressing is done after the bricks have 
become partially dry. Such bricks are 
employed in facing the walls of the better 
kinds of structures. 

12. Tiles .—Tiles are plates used for 
covering roofs. They resemble bricks in 
their composition and mode of manufac¬ 
ture, and are shaped in such a manner 
that when placed upon a building, the 
edge of one tile receives that next to it, 
so that water cannot percolate between 
them. Tiles, both of burnt clay and mar¬ 
ble, were used by the ancients; and the 
former continue to be employed in vari¬ 
ous parts of Europe. Flat tiles are used 
for floors in many countries, and especially 

(j in Italy. 







212 


THE BRICKLAYER. 


THE BRICKLAYER. 

1. The particular business of the brick¬ 
layer is to lay bricks in mortar or some 
other cement, so as to form one solid body; 
but he frequently constructs the founda¬ 
tions of buildings in rough stones, and, in 
some cities, he sets hewn stone in the su¬ 
perstructure. In the country, plastering 
is likewise connected with this business. 

2. Bricklaying consists in placing one 
brick upon another in mortar, chiefly in 
the construction of walls, chimneys, and 
ovens. In connecting these materials, 
especially in walls, two methods are em¬ 
ployed, one of which is called the English 
bond, and the other the Flemish bond. 
In the former method, the bricks are most 
commonly of one quality, and are laid 
crosswise and lengthwise in alternate rows. 
The bricks which are laid across the wall 
are called headers , and those which are 
laid in the other direction are called 
stretchers. The brick-work of the Ro¬ 
mans was of this kind, and so are the par¬ 
tition-walls of many modern brick edifices. 

3. The bricks employed in the walls 
constructed according to the Flemish me¬ 
thod, are of two, and frequently of three, 
qualities. Those placed in the front, or 
on the external surface, are manufactured 
with greater care, and, in some cases, are 
formed in a larger mould. A wall put up 
on this principle may be said to consist of 
two thin walls composed of stretchers, 
with occasional headers, to unite them to¬ 
gether. The space between them, when 
the wall is thick, is filled in with the 
inferior bricks. 

4. The inclosing walls of all brick edi¬ 
fices are erected on this plan, although 
they are thought to be more insecure than 
those constructed on the old English me¬ 
thod. The reasons alleged for the prefer¬ 


ence, are its superior beauty, and a con¬ 
siderable saving in the most expensive 
kind of bricks. Greater security migh 
be attained by the use of larger bricks, 
say sixteen inches in length, and wide 
and thick in proportion. Besides, an edi 
fice constructed of well-made bricks of this 
size would be but little inferior in appear¬ 
ance to marble itself. 

5. Most of the instruments used by the 
bricklayer are also employed by the stone¬ 
mason; and they have, therefore, been 
already mentioned. The particular me¬ 
thod of laying bricks, in their various ap¬ 
plications, can be learned by actual in¬ 
spection in almost every village, city, or 
neighbourhood, in our country: a more 
particular description of the bricklayer’s 
operations is therefore unnecessary. 

6. Before closing this subject, however, 
it may be well to state that the chimney 
appears to be an invention comparatively 
modern; since the first certain notice we 
have of it is found in an inscription at 
Venice, in which it is stated that, in 1347, 
a great many chimneys were thrown down 
by an earthquake. It is conjectured that 
this valuable improvement originated in 
Italy, inasmuch as it was here that chim¬ 
ney-sweeping was first followed as a busi¬ 
ness. 

7. Before the introduction of the chim¬ 
ney, it was customary to make the fire in 
a hole or pit in the centre or some other 
part of the floor, under an opening formed 
in the roof, which, in unfavourable wea¬ 
ther, could be closed by a moveable cover¬ 
ing. Among the Romans, the hearth or 
fire-place was located in the atrium or 
hall, and around it the lares, or household 
gods, were placed. To avoid being infest¬ 
ed with smoke, they burned dry wood 
anointed with the lees of oil. In warming 

'C 

other apartments of the house, they usee 








THE PLASTERER. 


213 


c-. ■ ■ . ■ "■ ■ 1 ■ 

portable furnaces, in which were placed 
embers and burnino- coals. 

o 

8. It is said by Seneca, who flourished 
about the middle of the first century of the 
Christian era, that in his time, a particu¬ 
lar kind of pipes was invented, and affix¬ 
ed to the walls of buildings, through which 
heat from a subterranean furnace was 
made to circulate. By this means, the 
rooms were heated more equally. In the 
southern parts of Italy and Spain, there 
are still very few chimneys. The same 
may be said of many other countries, where 
the climate is pleasant or very warm. 

9. Hollinshead, who wrote during the 
reign of Queen Elizabeth, thus describes 
the rudeness of the preceding generation 
in the arts of life: “ There were very few 
chimneys even in capital towns: the fire 
was laid to the wall, and the smoke issued 
out at the roof, or door, or window. The 
houses were wattled, and plastered over 
with clay; and all the furniture and utensils 
were of wood. The people slept on straw T 
pallets, with a log of wood for a pillow.” 


THE PLASTERER. 

1. In modern practice, plastering occurs 
in many departments of architecture. It 
is more particularly applied to the ceilings 
and interior walls of buildings, and also in 
rough-casting on their exterior. 

2. In plastering the interior parts of 
buildings, three coatings of mortar are 
commonly applied in succession. The 
mortar for the first coat is composed of 
about twelve parts of sand, six of lime, 
and three of hair, with a sufficient quan¬ 
tity of water to bring it to the proper con¬ 
sistence ; that for the second coat contains 
a less proportion of lime and hair; and 
that for the third coat is composed exclu¬ 
sively of lime and water. 


3. The mortar is applied directly to the 
solid wall, or to thin strips of wood called 
laths, which have been fastened with small 
nails to the joists, and other parts of the 
frame of the building. The tools with 
which the plasterer applies the mortar are 
troioels of different sizes and shapes, and 
the hawk. The latter instrument is a 
board about a foot square, with a short 
handle projecting at right angles from the 
bottom. 

4. In all well-finished rooms, cornices 
are run at the junction of the wall and 
ceiling. The materials of these cornices 
are lime, water, and plaster. The lime 
and water are first incorporated, and the 
plaster is added with an additional quanti¬ 
ty of water, as it may be needed for imme¬ 
diate application. The composition is ap¬ 
plied in a semifluid state, but the plaster 
causes it to set , or to become solid imme¬ 
diately. In the mean time, the workman 
applies to it, in a progressive manner, the 
edge of a solid piece of wood, in which 
an exact profile of the proposed cornice 
has been cut. 

5. Ornaments of irregular shape are 
cast in moulds of wax or plaster of Paris, 
and these are formed on models of the 
proposed figures in clay. Such ornaments 
were formerly the productions of manual 
operations performed by ingenious men 
called ornamental plasterers. The casts 
are all made cf the purest plaster; and, 
after having been polished, they are fast 
ened to the proper place with the same 
substance saturated with water. 

6. The branch of this business called 
rough-casting , consists in applying mortar 
to the exterior walls of houses. The mode 
in which the work is performed varies but 
little from that adopted in plastering the 
walls of apartments. It, however, requires 
only two coats of the cement; and when 







214 


THE SLATER. 


these have been applied, the surface is 
marked off in imitation of masonry. It 
is likewise sometimes coloured, that it 
may resemble marble or some other stone. 

7. The cement is commonly made of 
sharp sand and lime; but sometimes a kind 
of argillaceous stone, calcined in kilns and 
afterwards reduced to powder by mechani¬ 
cal means, makes a part of the composi¬ 
tion. The qualities of this material were 
first discovered by a Mr. Parker, who ob¬ 
tained letters patent for this application 
of it, in England, in 1796; hence it has 
been called Parker's cement. 


TIIE SLATER. 

1. Slate stone is valuable for the pro¬ 
perty of splitting in one direction, so as to 
afford fragments of a sufficient size and 
thinness to answer several purposes, but 
especially for covering houses and for 
writing slates. The best slates are those 

o 

which are even and compact, and which 
absorb the least water. 

2. The slates used in the United States 
are obtained either from our own quarries, 
of which there are several, or from those 
of Wales, in the county of Caernarvon¬ 
shire. The stone is quarried in masses, 
which are afterwards split into pieces of 
suitable thinness. These are trimmed to 
an oblong figure by means of a knife and a 
steel edge, which act upon the slate much 
in the manner of a large pair of shears. 

3. As it is impossible to dress all the 
slates to the same size without much waste 
of material, those engaged in their manu¬ 
facture have introduced several sizes, the 

allest of which are made of the frag¬ 


ments of the larger kinds. These are de¬ 
signated by names known to the trade, 
and to those practically conversant with 
the art of building. 

4. The slates, when brought to market, 
especially those from Wales, require ad¬ 
ditional dressing to fit them for use. The 
manner of applying them to roofs differs 
but little from that employed in putting 
on shingles, as they are lapped over each 
other in the same way, and confined to their 
place by means of nails of a similar kind 
The nails, however, have a broader head, 
and are somewhat larger, varying in size 
to suit the dimensions of the slate. The 
holes in the slate for the nails are made 
with a steel point attached to the slater’s 
hammer, or to his knife, technically called 
a saix. 

5. Slates are preferable to shingles on 
account of their durability, and, in a ma¬ 
jority of situations, for their fire-proof qual¬ 
ity. They, however, are objectionable on 
account of their weight and expensiveness, 
and are therefore beginning to be superse¬ 
ded in this country by sheets of zinc, and 
by those of iron coated with tin. Copper 
and lead are also used for roofs, but the 
metals just mentioned are beginning to 
exclude them altogether. 

o 

6. A serious objection to metal roofs has 
been their liability to crack, caused by the 
contraction and expansion of the material, 
in consequence of variations in the temper¬ 
ature of the weather; but a particular me¬ 
thod of putting the sheets together has 
been lately devised, which appears to ob¬ 
viate the difficulty. Tiles are not used in 
this country, although in Europe they are 
very common. 












THE PAINTER, AND THE GLAZIER. 


THE HOUSE AND SIGN PAINTER. 

1. The painting which is the subject 
of this article, relates to forming letters, j 
and sometimes ornamental and significant! 
figures, on signs, as well as to the appli- j 
cation of paints to houses and other struc¬ 
tures, for the purpose of improving their 
appearance, and of preserving them from 
the influence of the atmosphere and other 
destructive agents. 

2. The substances capable of being em¬ 
ployed by the house and sign painter, com¬ 
prise a great variety of articles, derived 
from the mineral, vegetable, and animal 
kingdoms; but he ordinarily confines his 
selection to but few: among which are 
white lead, litharge, Spanish brown, yel¬ 
low ochre, chrome yellow, red ochre, terra 


'! di scienna, lampblack, verdegris, linseed- 
oil, spirits of turpentine, and gold-leaf, 
j 3. White lead and litharge are manu- 
j factored in great quantities at chemical 
; works, sometimes established for the ex- 
j press purpose of making these and some 
! other preparations of lead. The substances 
! of which we are now speaking, are pro¬ 
duced in the following manner: the lead, 
in form of a continued sheet, about three 
feet long, six inches wide, and one line in 
thickness, is wound spirally up in such a 
manner that the coils may stand about 
half an inch apart. 

4. The metal in this form is placed ver- 
j tically in earthen vessels, at the bottom 
I of which is some strong vinegar. These 
vessels, being placed in sand, horse manure 
or tan, are exposed to a gentle heat, which 






















































































































THE PAINTER. 


*>16 


causes the gradual evaporation of the 
vinegar. The vapour thus produced, as¬ 
sisted by the oxygen which is present, 
converts the exposed surface into a carbo¬ 
nate of lead, the substance known as white 
lead, or ceruse. 

5. The corrosion of one of these sheets 
occupies from three to six weeks, during 
which time it is repeatedly uncoiled and 
scraped. Litharge, or flake white, is no¬ 
thing more than the densest and thickest 
scales produced in the manner just de¬ 
scribed. It can be obtained in a pure state 
from the dealers in paints, whereas the 
white lead of commerce is most common¬ 
ly adulterated with chalk. 

6. Spanish brown, yellow ochre, and 
terra di sienna, are earths impregnated 
with iron in different degrees of oxydation. 
Red ochre is yellow ochre burned. Chrome 
yellow is extensively manufactured in Bal¬ 
timore, from the chromate of iron, found 
near that city. In chemical phraseology, 
the manufactured article is the chromate 
of lead, since the chrome is separated 
from the iron by the aid of a solution of 
the nitrate or acetate of lead. 

7. Linseed-oil is obtained from flax¬ 
seed, by pressure. It is afterwards filter¬ 
ed, and then suffered to remain at rest, to j 
precipitate and clarify. This oil improves 
in quality by keeping; as it becomes, in a 
few years, as transparent as water. In this 
state, it is employed in the finest painting. 

8. Before the oil is used, it is common¬ 
ly boiled with a small quantity of litharge 
and red lead, to cause it to dry rapidly, 
after the paint has been applied. During 
the boiling, the scum is removed as fast 
as it rises, and this is mixed with inferior 
paints of a dark colour. Linseed-oil, thus 
prepared, is vended by dealers in paints, 
under the name of boiled oil. 

9. Soirits of turpentine is produced by 


distilling with water the resinous juice or 
sap of several species of the pine. The 
residuum, after distillation, is the turpen¬ 
tine of commerce. Spirits of turpentine 
is mixed with paints, to cause them to dry 
with rapidity. Like oil, it improves with 
age, and it is sold in the same manner by 
the common wine measure. 

10. White lead, and several other prin¬ 
cipal paints, are purchased in their crude 
condition, and reduced to a state of minute 
division in paint-mills. They are after¬ 
wards mixed with boiled oil, and put up 
in kegs of different sizes for sale. Many 
articles, however, are pulverized, and sold 
in a dry state. The preparation of paints 
is commonly a distinct business, and very 
few painters seem to be acquainted with 
the mode in which it is performed. 

11. In mixing colours for house and sign 
painting, white lead forms the basis of all 
the ingredients. This the colour preparer, 
or the painter himself, modifies and changes 
by the addition of colouring materials, un¬ 
til it is tinged with the proposed hue. The 
pigments derived from vegetable bodies 
produce, when first applied to surfaces, a 
brilliant effect; but they cannot long re¬ 
sist the combined influence of air and 
light; while the mineral colours, in the 
same exposure, remain unchanged. 

12. Painters, in the execution of tneir 
work, commonly lay on three coats of 
paint. In communicating a white, the 
two first coats are composed of white lead 
and oil; and in the last, spirits of turpen¬ 
tine is substituted for the oil, for the inside 
work. For the outside of buildings, espe¬ 
cially in warm and dry climates, this liquid 
is inapplicable, since it causes the paint to 
crack and flake off. It is, however, fre¬ 
quently used, when the painter is compell¬ 
ed to do his work at too low a rate, or when 
he is regardless of his reputation. 













THE GLAZIER. 


217 


13. For other colours, the composition 
for the different coats is the same, except 
for the two last, in which other colouring 
substances are added to the materials just 
mentioned, to give the proposed hue. The 
tools for painting houses are few in num¬ 
ber, and consist chiefly of brushes of dif¬ 
ferent sizes, made of hogs’ bristles. 

14. Graining is understood, among 
painters, to be the imitation of the differ¬ 
ent species of scarce woods used for the 
best articles of furniture. But the man¬ 
ner in which this kind of work is executed 
can be hardly gathered from a concise de¬ 
scription, although it may be easily learn¬ 
ed from a practical exhibition of the pro¬ 
cess by a painter. 

15. Ornamental painting embraces the 
execution of friezes and other decorative 
parts of architecture on walls and ceilings. 
The ornaments are drawn in outline with 
a black-lead pencil, and then painted and 
shaded, to give the proper effect. Some 
embellishments of this kind are executed 
in gold-leaf, in the same manner with gold 
letters on signs. This kind of work is 
called gilding in oil. 

16. Painting in oil, as applied to the 
execution of designs, seems to have been 
invented, or at least to have been brought 
into notice, in the early part of the fifteenth 
century, by John Van Eyck, of Flanders. 
Before this time, house-painting, so far as 
the exterior was concerned, could have 
been but little, if at all, practised. 

17. One profitable branch of common 
painting is that of painting and lettering 
signs. In performing this kind of work, 
the sign is first covered with two or three 
uniform coats of paint. The letters are 
next slightly sketched with chalk or a 
lead-pencil, and then formed in colours 
with a camels’-hair brush. When the let¬ 
ters are to be gilt, the process, so far, is 

28 


precisely the same. The leaf is laid upon 
the letters while the paint is in a tena- 
cious state, and is suffered to remain un¬ 
touched until the oil has become dry; 
after which the superfluous gold is re¬ 
moved. The whole is then covered with 
an oil varnish, which, in plain lettering, 
completes the operation. 


THE GLAZIER. 

1. Glazing, as practised in this country, 
consists chiefly of setting paries of glass in 
window-sashes. In the performance of 
this operation, the glazier first fits the panes 
to the sash, by cutting away, if necessary, 
a part of the latter with a chisel; he then 
fastens the glass slightly with little pieces 
of tin, which have been cut to a triangular 
shape; and, lastly, he applies putty at their 
junction with the sash, and by this means 
confines them firmly and permanently to 
their place. The putty is made of linseed- 
oil and whiting. The latter of these mate¬ 
rials is chalk cleared of its grosser impuri¬ 
ties, and ground in a colour-mill. 

2. Plain glazing is so simple, that no 
person need serve an apprenticeship to 
learn it; and there are but few who con¬ 
fine their attention to this business exclu¬ 
sively. It is commonly connected with 
some other of greater difficulty, such as 
that of the carpenter and joiner, or house 
and sign painter; but with the latter more 
frequently than any other. 

3. When the glass, as received from 
the manufacturer, may not be of the size 
and shape required for a proposed applica 
tion, the panes are cut by means of a 
diamond fixed in lead, and secured by a 
ferule of brass, which is fastened to a smal. 
cylindrical handle of hard wood. This in¬ 
strument is used, in conjunction with a 
straight edge, like a pencil in ruling lines 

T 









218 


THE GLAZIER. 


on paper for writing. The glass is after¬ 
wards broken in the direction of the frac¬ 
ture, by a slight pressure downwards. 

4. Although glass windows seem to us 
to be indispensable to comfort, yet glass 
had been manufactured many centuries in 
considerable perfection before it was ap¬ 
plied to this purpose. The houses in orien¬ 
tal countries had commonly no windows 
in front, and those on the other sides were 
provided with curtains or with a movea¬ 
ble trellis-work in summer, and in winter 
with oiled paper. 

5. In Rome and other cities of the em¬ 
pire, thin leaves of a certain kind of stone 
called lapis specularis were used. Win¬ 
dows of this material, however, were em¬ 
ployed only in the principal apartments of 
great houses, in gardens, sedans, and the 
like. Paper made of the Egyptian papyrus, 
linen cloth, thin plates of marble, agate, 
and horn, seem likewise to have been used. 

6. The first certain information we have 
of the employment of glass panes in win¬ 
dows, is found in the writings of Gregory 
of Tours, who flourished in the last quar¬ 
ter of the sixth century. This prelate 
states that the churches were furnished 
with windows of coloured glass in the 
fourth century after Christ. The oldest 
glass windows now in existence were of 
the twelfth century, and are in the church 
of St. Denis, the most ancient edifice of 
this description in France. 

7. iEneas Sylvius accounted it one of 
the most striking instances of splendour 
which he met with in Vienna, in 1458, 
that most of the houses had glass windows. 
Jn France, all the churches had these con¬ 


veniences in the sixteenth century, al¬ 
though there were but few in private 
dwellings. Talc, isinglass, plates of white 
horn, oiled paper, and thinly shaved leather, 
were used instead of glass. A similar 
state of things prevailed in England. 

8. The glass used for the windows of 
churches and other public buildings, after 
the fourth century, was very commonlv 
intrinsically coloured or superficially paint¬ 
ed. Painting on glass had its origin in 
the third century, and at first it consisted 
in the mere arrangement of small pieces 
of glass of different colours in some sort 
of symmetry, and constituted a kind of 
mosaic-work. 

9. Afterwards, when more regular de¬ 
signs came to be attempted, such as the 
human figure, the whole address of the 
artist went no farther than drawing the 
outlines of the objects in black on glasses 
resembling in colour the subjects to be re¬ 
presented. The art, in this state of ad¬ 
vancement, was spread over a great part 
of Europe. 

10. About the beginning of the fifteenth 
century, a method of fixing metallic co¬ 
lours in glass by means of heat was dis¬ 
covered, and from this the art derived 
great advantages. It flourished most dur¬ 
ing the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries; 
but it declined in the following age, and 
in the eighteenth century it was very little 
practised in any country. It has, however, 
been partially revived, of late, in Germa¬ 
ny. A very good specimen of this kind of 
painting, as well as of coloured glass, may 
be seen in St John’s church, at Philadel¬ 
phia. 








1. Turning is a very useful art, by which 
a great variety of articles are almost ex¬ 
clusively manufactured. Besides this, it 
constitutes a considerable part of the opera¬ 
tions of several trades and occupations; 
such as the chairmaker, machinist, cabinet¬ 
maker, brass-founder, &c.; since every 
substance of a solid nature can le submit¬ 
ted to the process. 

2. Turning is performed in a lathe , an 
apparatus constructed in various ways, ac¬ 
cording to the particular purposes to which 
it is to be applied; although, in all cases, 
the general principle of its operation is the 
same. The kind represented in the above 
picture is used for plain or circular turn¬ 
ing in wood. On examination, it will be 
perceived that two wheels of different sizes 
make essential Darts of it. On the extend¬ 


ed axle of the smaller one, is fastened tne 
piece to be turned; and immediately in 
front of this is the rest , on which the cut¬ 
ting instrument is supported during the 
performance of the operation. 

3. When the material to be turned is 
wood, it is commonly cut to the proper 
length with a saw, and brought to a form 
approaching to the cylindrical by means of 
an axe or drawing-knife. It is next fasten¬ 
ed in the lathe. This is done by different 
means, varying according to the particular 
form of the thing to be turned. In plain 
circular turning, as applied to bed-posts, 
legs of tables, and rounds for chairs, the 
piece is supported at each end. That at 
the left hand is driven upon a piece of 
steel which has been screwed upon the 
extended axle of the small wheel; and 

































































































220 


THE TURNER. 


the other end is fixed upon a steel point 
olaced in an upright moveable piece, call¬ 
ed a puppet-head. 

4. In case the wood is to be turned on 
the inside, as in making a bowl, cup, or 
mortar, the piece is supported altogether 
at one end, by means of a hollow cylinder 
of wood, brass, or iron, called a chuck, 
which receives it on one side, and on the 
other is screwed upon the end of the axle. 
The axle is sometimes called the mandril, 
and any extension of it, by means of a 
piece added to it for a centre, on which 
anything maybe turned which will admit of 
a hole through it, is denominated an arbour. 

5. The tools used in turning wood and 
ivory are gouges and chisels, of different 
sizes and shapes. In using these, they are 
placed upon the rest, and brought in con¬ 
tact with the revolving material of the 
proposed figure. The gouge is employed 
in cutting away the rough exterior, and the 
chisel in producing a still further reduc¬ 
tion, and a greater smoothness of surface. 

6. In working in very hard wood and in 
ivory, the grooving tool, a sharp pointed 
instrument, somewhat similar to the gra¬ 
ver, is used in the first part of the opera¬ 
tion ; and by this the grain of the substance 
is cut into contiguous grooves, and pre¬ 
pared for an easy reduction by the chisel. 
The instruments for turning metals are 
numerous, but they differ in some respects 
from those for cutting wood. 

7. In almost every kind of turning, a 
tool called the calipers is necessary for 
measuring the diameters of the work. In 
its form, it bears some resemblance to the 
compasses or dividers One or both of the 
legs, however, are curved; and one kind of 
this instrument has four legs, two curved, 
or two straight, at each end, with a pivot 
in the centre, on which it is opened and 
shut. The former of these is employed in 


measuring the dimensions of outside work, 
and the latter for that on the inside. This 
kind is called the in-and-out calipers; and 
is especially useful in turning a cylinder, 
or pin, which shall exactly fit an internal 
cylinder already made, and vice versa. 

8. There is but little difference in 
the management of turning different sub¬ 
stances. The principal thing to be attend¬ 
ed to is to adapt the velocity of the motion 
to the nature of the material: thus wood 
will work best with the greatest velocity 
that can be given to it. Brass should have 
a motion about half as quick as wood, and 
iron and steel still less; for, in operating 
on metallic substances, the tool is liable 
to become hot, and lose its temper; be¬ 
sides which, a certain time is requisite for 
the act of cutting to take place. 

9. When compared with many other 
mechanical operations, the art of turning 
may be considered as perfect in its accu¬ 
racy and expedition. The lathe is, there¬ 
fore, resorted to for the performance of 
every work of which it is capable; nor is 
its use confined to the production of forms 
perfectly cylindrical, for it can be easily 
made to produce figures of irregular shape, 
such as lasts, gunstocks, &c. 

10. The lathe was well known to the 
Greeks and Romans, as well as to many 
other nations of antiquity. Diodorus Si¬ 
culus, who wrote in the time of Julius 
Caesar and Augustus, says that it was in¬ 
vented by one Talus, a nephew of Daeda¬ 
lus. Pliny ascribes it to Theodore of Sa¬ 
mos, and mentions one Thericles, who had 
rendered himself very famous by his dex¬ 
terity in managing the lathe. The Greek 
and Latin authors frequently mention this 
instrument; and, among the ancients, it 
was customary to express the accuracy and 
nicety of a thing by saying it was formed 
in a lathe. 












THE CABINET-MAKER, AND THE UPHOLSTERER. 


THE CABINET-MAKER. 

1. It is the business of the cabinet¬ 
maker to manufacture particular kinds of 
household furniture, such as tables, stands, 
bureaus, sideboards, desks, bookcases, sofas, 
bedsteads.. &c., as well as a certain descrip¬ 
tion of chairs made of mahogany and ma¬ 
ple. Many of the operations of this busi¬ 
ness are similar to those of the carpenter 
and joiner, although they require to be 
conducted with greater nicety and exact¬ 
ness. 

2. The qualifications of a finished cabi¬ 
net-maker are numerous and of difficult 
acquisition; so that they are seldom con¬ 
centrated in any single individual. He 
requires not only a correct taste, but also 
a knowledge of drawing, architecture, and j 


mechanics, besides the abilities cf a good 
practical workman, 

3. A knowledge of drawing is especial¬ 
ly useful in designing new articles of fur¬ 
niture, or in improving the form of those 
which have been already introduced. It 
also enables the artist to determine with 
accuracy what would be the general effect 
of furniture, were different pieces of it 
placed in any proposed apartment; and, 
combined with architectural knowledge, 
it enables him to adapt the style of his 
wares to that of the building for which 
they may be designed. 

4. In general, the principles of this busi¬ 
ness are fixed, so far as relates to the mode 
of operating in the execution of the work; 
yet continual changes are made in the 


T 2 























































































































222 


THE CABINET-MAKER. 


form and construction of its various arti¬ 
cles, so as to keep pace with the advance¬ 
ment of correct taste, or with the caprices 
of fashion. In fact, the shapes of furniture 
are almost as changeable as those of fe¬ 
male dress; and this causes many expen¬ 
sive pieces to fall into disuse, while others 
are introduced, which, for a time, are con¬ 
sidered indispensable to comfort, and which 
in turn enjoy but a temporary favour. 

5. The cabinet-maker uses various kinds 
of wood in the manufacture of his wares; 
but those which are most frequently em¬ 
ployed in the United States are pine, ma¬ 
ple, poplar, cherry, black walnut, white 
oak, beach, mahogany and rose, all of 
which are abundant in this country, ex¬ 
cept the two last. Mahogany is brought 
in great quantities from the West Indies 
and South America; rose-wood is obtain¬ 
ed chiefly from the West Indies and Bra¬ 
zil, although it was first introduced into 
notice from the island of Cyprus. 

6. The applicability of mahogany to the 
manufacture of cabinet-ware was accident¬ 
ally discovered in London, about the year 
1724. A physician named Gibbons receiv¬ 
ed a present of some of the planks from 
his brother, a sea-captain, who had brought 
them from the West Indies chiefly as bal¬ 
last. The doctor was, at that time, erect¬ 
ing a house; and, supposing them to be 
adapted to the purposes of building, gave 
them to his workmen, who, on trial, reject¬ 
ed them as being too hard to be wrought 
with their tools. 

7. A cabinet-maker was next employed 
to make a candle-box of some of it, and 
he also complained of the hardness of the 
timber; but when the box was finished, it 
outshone in beauty all the doctor’s other 
furniture. He then required a bureau to 
be made of the same kind of material; and 
this, having been finished, became the sub¬ 


ject of exhibition to his friends, as a piece 
of remarkable beauty. The wood was 
immediately taken into general favour, 
and it soon became an article of merchan¬ 
dise of considerable importance. 

8. In giving the reader a view of the 
operative part of this business, we have 
selected the bureau as affording the best 
means of illustration. The material which 
composes the frame and drawers of this 
piece of furniture is commonly some kind 
of soft wood, such as pine or poplar; and 
this is faced with thin layers of mahoga¬ 
ny in those parts which are to be exposed 
to view. 

9. The materials for the frame and 
drawers are first marked out, and the seve¬ 
ral pieces reduced to the form and dimen¬ 
sions required, with planes and other in¬ 
struments. Thin pieces of mahogany are 
firmly fixed to the surfaces which require 
them. This part of the work is called veneer¬ 
ing. The workman prepares the surface 
of the soft wood for the veneer , by cutting 
it into small contiguous grooves, by means 
of a small plane, the cutting edge of which 
is full of little notches and teeth. 

10. Melted glue having been spread 
upon both surfaces with a brush, the parts 
are placed in contact, and firmly pressed 
together by means of hand-screws. Be¬ 
fore the screws are applied, the surface 
of the veneer is covered with a piece of 
heated board, termed, in this application, 
a caul. One piece of this kind commonly 
serves a veneer on each side of it at the 
same time. 

11. The mahogany thus attached to the 
softer wood, is afterwards wrought with 
the toothed-plane . and others of the com¬ 
mon kind. It is then scraped with a flat 
piece of steel, having edges which act 
upon the surface in the same manner with 
pieces of broken panes of glass. The 








THE CABINET-MAKER 


223 


polishing is finished, so far as it is carried 
at this stage of the process, by the use of 
sand-paper. 

12. The several pieces which compose 
the frame of the bureau are put together 
with the joint called mortice and tenon; 
and those which form the four sides of the 
drawers, with that called dovetail. The 
bottom is united to the sides on the right 
and left, and sometimes in front, by the 
groove-and-tongue, and its rear edge is 
fastened with a few nails. The bearers 
of the drawers are fastened on by means 
of nails. 

13. The joints are made to fit not only 
by the accuracy of the work, but by the 
application of glue previously to the union 
of the parts: this is especially the case 
with the mortice and tenon. The back 
of the bureau is composed of some cheap 
wood, such as pine or poplar; but the 
panel at each end is most commonly plain 
mahogany through its entire thickness. 

14. The parts which are to be exposed 
to view are next to be varnished and polish¬ 
ed. The material for the former purpose 
is called copal varnish , because one of the 
principal ingredients in it is a kind of gum 
called copal, which is obtained from various 
parts of America. This kind of varnish 
is made by melting the gum with an equal 
quantity of linseed-oil, spirits of turpentine, 
or alcohol. 

15. To give the work a complete finish, 
four coats of varnish are successively ap¬ 
plied; in addition to these, a particular 
kind of treatment is used after the laying 
on and drying of each coat. After the 
application of the first coat, the surface is 
rubbed with a piece of wood of convenient 
form; after the second, with sand-paper 
and pulverized pumice-stone; after the 
third, with pumice-stone again; and after 
the fourth, with very finely powdered pum¬ 


ice-stone and rotten-stone. A little lin- 
sced-oil is next applied, and the whole 
process is finished by the application of 
flour, and by friction with the hand. 

16. Some parts of several pieces of fur¬ 
niture are turned in the lathe; and, in 
large cities, this part of the work is per¬ 
formed by professed turners. The veneer¬ 
ing of certain kinds of work of a cylindri¬ 
cal form is also, in some cases, a distinct 
business; but, in places distant from large 
cities, the whole work is commonly per¬ 
formed by the cabinet-maker himself. 

17. Mahogany is brought to market in 
logs hewn to a square form; and persons 
who deal in it commonly purchase it in 
large quantities, and cause it to be sawn 
into pieces of suitable dimensions for sale. 
Formerly, and in some cases at present, 
slabs were sawn into thin pieces for veneer¬ 
ing, by hand; but, within a few years, a 
more expeditious method by the circular 
saw has been adopted. In performing the 
operation by this means, the slab is placed 
upon its edge, and shoved along against the 
teeth of the rapidly-revolving saw. It is 
kept in the proper position by holding the 
right side of it firmly against an upright 
plank called the rest. 

18. Mahogany is either plain , mottled, 
or crotched: nevertheless, the different 
kinds expressed by these terms are met 
with in the same tree. The variegated 
kinds are found at or near the joining of 
the limbs to the trunk ; and these are used 
almost exclusively for veneering. The 
plain sort is employed for more common 
purposes, and in those parts of furniture 
required to be less splendid in appearance. 
It may be well to remark, also, that plain 
mahogany is often veneered as well as the 
softer woods. Black walnut, white oak, 
rose, and several other woods, are likewise 
used for veneering, although not so muca 










224 


THE UPHOLSTERER. 


as mahogany. Our native woods will be 
hereafter more used in this way, since 
mahogany is gradually becoming more 
scarce. 

19. In Europe, particularly in England, 
the business of the cabinet-maker is com¬ 
monly united with that of the upholsterer; 
and this is sometimes the case in the 
United States. All, however, who make 
sofas and chairs intrude enough upon the 
latter business to cover and stuff them, or 
they employ a journeyman upholsterer to 
Derform this part of the work. 


THE UPHOLSTERER. 

1. The upholsterer makes beds, sack¬ 
ing-bottoms, mattresses, cushions, curtains 
for windows and beds; cuts out, sews to¬ 
gether, and fastens down, carpets. One 
branch of his business, also, consists in 
covering, or lining and stuffing sofas and 
particular kinds of chairs, the frames of 
which are made by cabinet-makers and 
fancy chair-makers. 

2. Beds are stuffed with the feathers of 
geese and ducks. The sack which con¬ 
tains them, when in use, is called a tick , 
and the striped stuff of which it is com¬ 
posed is called ticking. The feathers used 
by the upholsterer are purchased from the 
feather-merchants, who in turn procure 
them from country merchants and pedlars. 
The dealer in feathers also employs tra¬ 
velling agents to collect them in different 
parts of the country. 

3. Beds and pillows are also made of 
down obtained from the nests of the eider- 
duck, which is found in the northern parts 
of Europe and America, above latitude 45°. 
Eider-down is worth about two dollars per 
pound, and five or six times that quantity 
Is sufficient for a bed of common size. 

4 Mattresses are made of curled hair, 


moss, shavings of rattan, flock, straw, and 
cat-tail flag. The hair most employed for 
this purpose grows upon the tails of cattle, 
and upon the manes and tails of horses. 
It is purchased, in its natural state, from 
tanners, by persons who make it a business 
to prepare it for use. The last process of 
the preparation consists in twisting it into 
a kind of rope: these ropes are picked to 
pieces by the upholsterer, and the hair, m 
its curled and elastic state, is applied to 
stuffing mattresses, cushions, chairs, and 
sofas. 

5. Moss is obtained from the Southern 
States of our Union, where it is found in 
great abundance, and of a good quality. 
Flock is made by reducing to a degree of 
fineness, by machinery, coarse tags of 
wool, pieces of woollen cloth, old stockings, 
and other woollen offals of little or no value 
in any other application. Of all the mate¬ 
rials for stuffing upholstery, hair is by far 
the best; and, although it costs more in its 
original purchase, it is much cheaper in 
the end. 

6. In making and putting up window 
and bed curtains, considerable taste is re 
quired to insure success in this branch o> 
the business. A knowledge of drawing is 
therefore, particularly useful here, in im 
proving the taste, as well as in exhibit 
ing to customers the prevailing fashions 
or any changes which may be proposed 
The trimmings consist chiefly of tassels 
fringes, and gilded or brass fixtures. 

7. We have not space for a particular 
description of the manner in which any 
of the operations of the upholsterer are 
performed; nor is this necessary, since 
the work itself, in almost every specimen 
of it, affords obvious indications of the man¬ 
ner of its execution. We will merely re¬ 
mark, that a great proportion of it is per¬ 
formed by females. 








THE UPHOLSTERER. 


225 


8. In the first ages of the world, it was 
the universal practice to sleep upon the 
skins of beasts, and this is still the custom 
among the savage nations of the present 
day. The Greeks and the Romans, in the 
early part of their history, slept in this 
manner, and so did the common people of 
some parts of Germany, even until modern 
times. 

9. The first advancement from the use of 
skins was the substitution of rushes, heath, 
or straw, which was primarily strewed 
loosely on the ground or floor, and finally 
confined with ticking; and these and simi¬ 
lar materials are still used by the poor in 
various parts of the world. So late as the 
close of the thirteenth century, the royal 
family of England slept on beds made of 
straw. 

10. During the civilized periods of an¬ 
tiquity, the wealthy commonly filled their 
beds with feathers. After the Romans had 
become luxurious, they tised several kinds 
of beds, among which were the lectus cu- 
bicularis , or chamber bed, whereon they 
slept; the lectus discubitorius , or table 
bed, whereon they eat; and the lectus lu- 
cubratorius , on which they studied. 

11. The Romans adopted the eastern 
fashion of reclining at their meals at the 
close of the second Punic war, about 200 
years before Christ, when Scipio Africanus 
brought some little beds from Carthage, 

O O' 

which were thence called Punicani. 
These beds were low, made of wood, co¬ 
vered with leather, and stuffed with hay 
or straw. Before this time, they sat down 
to eat on plain wooden benches, in imita¬ 
tion of the heroes of Homer, or after the 
manner of the Cretans and LacedEemo- 
nians. 

12. From the greatest simplicity, the 
Romans at length carried their supping 
beds to the most surprising magnificence. 

29 


The bedsteads were sometimes made of 
gold or silver, and very commonly of wood 
adorned with plates of these metals or 
with tortoise shell. On the couch was 
laid a mattress or quilt, stuffed with fea¬ 
thers or wool. 

13. Three persons commonly occupied 
one couch. They lay with the upper part 
of the body reclined on the left arm, the 
head a little raised, the back supported by 
cushions, and the limbs stretched out at 
full length or a little bent. The feet of 
the first were placed behind the back of 
the second, and his feet behind the back 
of the third. Reclining at meals was cus¬ 
tomary in Asia in the time of our Saviour, 
as is clearly shown in John, xiii. 23 and 
25, and this rendered it convenient for 
Mary to anoint the .feet of Jesus while at 
the table. 

14. The Romans, during the republic, 
made their tables of a square form, and on 
three sides of it was placed a couch; but, 
under the emperors, a long couch of a 
semicircular form having been introduced, 
the table was made of a similar shape to 
conform to it. In either case, one side 
was left empty to admit of the approach 
of the servants. 

15. We have no certain evidence that 
carpets were known in the civilized pe¬ 
riods of antiquity. They appear to have 
originated in Persia at a time compara¬ 
tively modern, and to have spread in a 
gradual manner towards the west. They 
were unknown in England in the reign of 
Elizabeth, for it was then the fashion to 
strew the floor with hay and rushes. Even 
the presence-chamber of this princess was 
covered in this manner. The manufacture 
of carpets was not commenced in England 
until the year 1750. They are now ex¬ 
tensively manufactured even in the United 
States. 












THE CHAIR-MAKER. 


1. The chair was invented at so early 
a period, that its origin cannot now be as¬ 
certained. It was used by all the civilized 
nations of antiquity; and some of their 
patterns for this species of furniture have 
been revived, with some modifications, in 
modern times: for example, a stool for sit¬ 
ting at the piano, now called the X, is the 
lower part of a chair used in the Roman 
empire near two thousand years ago. The 
seat and back were stuffed with some soft 
elastic substance. 

2. The seats used by the barbarous con¬ 
querors of the Roman empire hardly de¬ 
serve the name of chairs, as they common¬ 
ly consisted of little or nothing more than 
a stool with three or four legs. Even the 
great Alfred, who swayed the sceptre of 
England in the latter part of the ninth 


century, possessed nothing approaching 
nearer to a chair than a three-legged stool 
made of oak timber. This species of seat 
was at length improved into a chair, by 
the addition of another leg and a back. 

3. The next step in the art of chair¬ 
making was to cover the seats with cloth, 
and to stuff them with some kind of wad¬ 
ding. The material of which the frames 
were made was oak: and, for a long period, 
they were exceedingly heavy and inconve¬ 
nient. The armed-chair is said to have 
been contrived by an alderman of Cripple- 
gate. Such chairs, however, were in use 
among the ancient Greeks and Romans. 

4. Our old-fashioned chair, with four 
upright posts, several horizontal rounds 
and slats, together with wooden splints or 
flags for the bottom, is comparatively mo 
















































































































THE CHAIR-MAKER. 


227 


dern, although it is impossible to state the 
period ol its introduction. Very few of any 
other kind were used in the United States 
until near the beginning of the present 
century. 

5. The Windsor chair seems to have 
been first used for a rural seat in the 
grounds about Windsor castle, England; 
whence its name. It was originally con¬ 
structed of round wood, with the bark on ; 
Dut the chair-makers soon began to make 
them of turned wood, for the common pur¬ 
poses of house-keeping. We cannot learn 
that any were made in this country before 
the close of the revolution in 1783. 

6. A great proportion of the chair-ma¬ 
ker’s stuff’ is brought to the proper form 
by means of the lathe; and this machine 
is used for this purpose in every practica¬ 
ble case: but this part of the work is not 
performed in the cities, since it is found to 
be less expensive, and more convenient, to 
purchase the timber turned in the country. 
Slats for the back, bent to the proper shape, 
are also obtained from the same source. 

7. The Windsor chair is varied in its 
construction and finish, in some particu¬ 
lars ; but, in all cases, it has a seat made 
of thick plank of cypress, bass, or some 
other soft wood. The slats, when employ¬ 
ed, are also made of the same wood, or of 
soft maple. The parts which are turned 
are commonly of the wood last mentioned. 

8. In constructing chairs from these ma¬ 
terials, the workman undertakes several 
at a time, say from one to two or three 
dozens. We may suppose, as is frequent¬ 
ly the case, that he first cuts up a quantity 
of planks to the proper size for the seats, 
and reduces them to the proposed form and 
smoothness by means of the drawing-knife, 
adze, spoke-shaves, and sand-paper. He 
next cuts the various pieces which are to 
compose the frame to the proper length; 


turns the ends of those which need it, to 
make the joint; and bores the requisite 
holes with a bit. In putting the parts to¬ 
gether, the joints are made to fit very 
closely, and their union is rendered per¬ 
manent by means of glue. 

9. The chairs are next covered with 
three coats of paint, and with two coats 
of copal or some other kind of varnish; 
and this, for plain work, completes the 
whole process of the manufacture; but 
when they are to be ornamented, gold or 
copper leaf, or bronze, is put on before the 
application of the last coat of varnish. The 
bronze used by painters is finely pulver¬ 
ized copper, tin, or zinc. 

10. The ornamenter uses paper patterns, 
which he applies to the surface to be orna¬ 
mented, to guide him in the execution of 
his work. The powder is laid on with a 
camel’s-hair brush, or with a piece of raw 
cotton. Light and shade are produced by 
a proper distribution of the powder, or by 
paint of a dark colour. The bronze is 
made to adhere by means of size, which 
has been previously laid on. 

11. Several other kinds of chairs are 
also made by the common chair-maker; 
and the frames, or some parts of them, are 
sawn out of planks, with a narrow-bladed 
saw, which can be easily guided upon the 
line of any pattern. The principal parts 
of the frame are commonly put together 
with the mortice and tenon; and the bot¬ 
toms are composed of cane, flags, or a pe¬ 
culiar kind of rush. The cane is likewise 
used in the backs of chairs, especially in 
those having rockers. 

12. The manufacture of mahogany chair? 
with stuffed seats, sometimes constitutes 
a distinct branch of business; at othei 
times, it is connected with that of making 
sofas; and again with cabinet-making ir 
general. 













THE CARVER, AND THE GILDER. 


THE CARVER. 

1. Carving, in its widest sense, is the 
art of forming figures in various hard sub¬ 
stances by means of some cutting instru¬ 
ments, such as a chisel or graver; but in 
the restricted sense in which the term is 
generally applied, it has reference to the 
production of figures in wood. 

2. Carving in wood, in all countries 
where it has been practised, has ever pre¬ 
ceded sculpture or carving in stone. It is, 
therefore, an art of the highest antiquity; 
and, although the same with sculpture in 
some of its applications, yet it differs from 
it somewhat in the mode of execution, 
according with the nature of the material. 

3. The art of carving is very extensive 
in its application, being used in the deco¬ 
rative parts of architecture, both civil and 


! naval, and likewise in ornamenting cabi¬ 
net-ware, as well as in forming patterns 
for casting in metals, particularly in iron 
| and brass. The Gothic style of architec¬ 
ture is peculiarly rich in carved work, and 
the productions of some ages are more so 
than those of others. 

4. The style of Louis the Fourteenth, 
of France, so called because practised in 
his reign, was more overloaded with orna¬ 
ment than any other. A lighter and more 
beautiful style succeeded, which is still 
employed for some purposes; but general¬ 
ly the chaste and simple line of Grecian 
ornament now prevails. 

5. In executing any proposed work, a 
drawing is first made on paper, commonly 
with a lead-pencil. The part of the paper 
not embraced in the outline is tnen cut 











































































































































































TIIE GILDER. 


229 


away, and the remaining portion is laid 
upon the surface of the wood. The out¬ 
lines are next drawn on the wood, by 
moving the pencil around those on the pa¬ 
per. The design having been thus trans¬ 
ferred, the superfluous portions of the wood 
are cut away, with carving tools; of which 
there is a considerable variety, both of size 
and form. The tools are driven with a 
mallet or with the palm of the hand, but 
in most cases with the latter. 

6. A capacity for designing, and a know¬ 
ledge of drawing and modelling, are par¬ 
ticularly necessary, to make a finished car¬ 
ver. Without these qualifications, at least 
in some degree, one may be a mechanic, 
but not an artist. The subject most diffi¬ 
cult of execution is the human figure, and 
in producing it with accuracy, the same 
qualifications in the artist are required, 
and the same general process is pursued, 
as in producing it in marble. 


THE GILDER. 

1. Carving and gilding are, in most 
cases, ostensibly united as one business, 
although in fact they are branches of man¬ 
ufacture totally distinct. The gilder, there¬ 
fore, who writes over his door, “Carver 
and Gilder,” seldom has any practical 
knowledge of carving. For every thing 
in this line of work, he is dependent on 
the carver, who commonly pursues his 
business in a private way. 

2. The operation of gilding, as per¬ 
formed by those whose business is now 
under consideration, is executed chiefly 
on wood. It is employed most frequently 
for picture and looking-glass frames, and 
for upholstery fixtures. It is a mechanical 
process, and consists in applying gold leaf 
to surfaces, in such a manner as to ad¬ 
here with tenacity. 


3. Before the application of the metal, 
a tedious process must be performed, by 
way of preparation. The surface to be 
gilded is successively covered with from 
five to seven coats of glutinous size, made 
by boiling scraps of parchment in water, 
with the addition of a little whiting. The 
average thickness of the coat thus pro¬ 
duced, is about one-sixteenth of an inch. 

4. The surface is next rubbed with free¬ 
stone and pumice stone, of a shape cor¬ 
responding with the pattern of the frame, 
while a small quantity of water is occa¬ 
sionally applied, to increase their effects. 
After this, the sizing is rendered still 
smoother, by friction with sand paper. 
This surface is then covered with three 
coats of burnished gold size , which is 
composed of English pipe clay, venison 
suet, and French bole, or red chalk, mixed 
in a suitable quantity of weak parchment 
size. The preparation is completed by 
rubbing the surface with worn sand paper, 
by washing it in water with a sponge, and 
by rubbing it with a piece of cloth. 

5. The leaf is laid on with a broad, but 
thin brush, called a tip. Before the gold 
is applied, however, the surface is well 
wet with alcohol and water. When dry, 
the parts designed to be bright, are bur¬ 
nished with a polished agate or flint. In 
the best kind of work, a second coat of 
the leaf is required. In gilding irregular 
surfaces, such as the ornaments at the cor¬ 
ners of the frames, a size made of linseed 
oil, white lead, yellow ochre, and japan, is 
laid on a few hours before the application 
of the leaf. This is called gilding in oil. 

6. The ornaments on the frames are 
cast in moulds, and are made of a compo¬ 
sition of glue, whiting, rosin, turpentine, 
and Burgundy pitch. The moulds are 
taken from patterns, originally executed 
by the carver. 











THE COOPER. 


1. The cooper manufactures casks, tubs, 
pails, and various other articles for domes¬ 
tic use, as well as vessels for containing 
all kinds of liquids and merchandise of a 
dry nature. He also applies hoops to boxes 
which are to be transported, with their 
valuable contents, to a distance from the 
cities. 

2. The productions of this art being of 
prime necessity, the trade must have been 
exercised at a very early period. Roman 
writers on rural economy speak of the ex¬ 
istence of its productions more than two 
thousand years ago; nevertheless they are 
still unknown in some countries, and there 
the inhabitants keep or carry liquids in 
skins daubed over with pitch. 

3. Bottles of this kind were used, more 
or less, in all parts of the Roman empire, 


in the days of our Saviour; and to such lie 
alluded, when speaking of putting new 
wine into old bottles. Earthern vessels, 
of various dimensions, were also in exten¬ 
sive use at the same time. The custom 
of keeping wine in such vessels is still 
common in the southern parts of Europe. 
Pliny gives to the Piedmontese the merit 
of introducing casks. In his time, they 
were daubed with pitch. 

4. Cedar and oak are the woods chiefly 
employed as materials in this business; 
and the persons who carry it on, as well 
as journeymen, confine their attention to 
the production of wares from one or the 
other of these woods: hence the division 
of the workmen into cedar coopers and 
oak coopers. 

5. It is not always the case, however, 
















































































THE COOPER. 


231 


that every cooper executes all kinds of 
work belonging to either one of these di¬ 
visions of the trade; but this is not because 
there is any peculiar difficulty attending 
any part of the business, but because some 
particular kind of coopering is required 
in preference to others: for example, in 
some places flour barrels are the casks 
most needed; in others, those for sugar, 
tobacco, pearl-ash, or some kind of spirits. 

6. In illustrating the general operations 
of this business, we will describe the pro¬ 
cess of making a tub. The timber is first 
cut to the proper length with the kind of 
saw used in the cities for cutting fire-wood. 
It is next split into pieces with a frow, the 
curvature of which corresponds, at least 
with some degree of exactness, to that of 
the proposed vessel. The several pieces 
are then shaved on the edges with a 
straight drawing-knife on the inside with 
one of a concave form, and on the outside 
with one of corresponding convexity. 

7. After this, they are jointed on a long 
plane, which is placed with its face up¬ 
wards, in an inclined position. The work¬ 
man is guided in giving the proper angle 
to the surface cut with the plane by a 
wooden gauge of peculiar form. The 
staves, having been thus prepared, are set 
up in a truss hoop; and after this has been 
driven down, one or two others which are 
to remain are put on. The outside is then 
made smooth with a convex drawing-knife, 
and the inside with a smoothing-plane, the 
edge of which is circular, to correspond 
with the form of the surface. The inside 
of small wooden vessels is generally made 
smooth with a crooked drawing-knife. 

8. The staves are now sawn off to a 
uniform length at the bottom, and a groove 
is cut for the insertion of the bottom. The 
latter operation is performed by means of 
a cutting instrument fixed in a kind of 


gauge. The several pieces to compose 
the bottom are brought to the proper form 
and smoothness with a straight drawing- 
knife ; and having been slightly fastened 
together by wooden pins, the whole, as one 
piece, is inserted in its proper place by 
driving it down from the top on the inside. 
The whole process is finished by driving 
on the hoops, and making the holes in the 
handles. 

9. The cedar employed in this business 
is a considerable tree, which grow T s in va¬ 
rious parts of the world, but especially in 
the United States, where it occupies large 
tracts called cedar or cypress swamps. 
The wood is soft, smooth, and of an aroma¬ 
tic smell. It is likewise much used for 
shingles. The Dismal Swamp, lying in 
Virginia and North Carolina, contains an 
abundance of this kind of timber. 

10. The operations in oak vary from 
those in cedar so far as to conform to the 
nature of the material, and the forrmof the 
vessels manufactured. In bringing the 
staves to the proper form, the workman is 
guided altogether by the eye; and, if they 
must be bent, they require to be heated. 
The fire for this purpose is made of shav¬ 
ings and chips in a small furnace of sheet 
iron, called a crusset. The hoops, both 
for cedar and oak wares, are made of thin 
strips of iron, or of small oak, hickory, 
ash, or cedar saplings. 

11. The coopers in England derive a 
great deal of their employment from the 
West India trade. Barrels, puncheons, 
and hogsheads, are carried out of the coun¬ 
try filled with dry goods, and are returned 
filled with rum and sugar. In the United 
States, much work of this kind is done for 
the same market; but then the staves and 
heads are only fitted and marked here, to 
be afterwards put together in the West 
Indies. 















1. The artisan who makes the wood¬ 
work of common wheel carriages, or the 
wheels of coaches, is denominated a wheel¬ 
wright; but under this head we propose 
to include whatever we may say on the 
construction and finishing of wheel car¬ 
riages in general. 

2. It must be evident, even to a super¬ 
ficial observer, that this business, in its 
different branches, occupies a large space 
in our domestic industry; since almost 
every farmer in the country owns a vehi¬ 
cle of some sort, and since the streets of 
our busy cities and towns exhibit, during 
a great part of the day, scenes of bustle 
occasioned, in a great measure, by the 
passing and repassing of carriages of dif¬ 
ferent kinds. 

3. The principal kinds of wheel car- j 


riages made in this country are the cart, 
wagon, gig, and coach; and of each of 
these there are various sorts, differing in 
strength and mode of construction, to suit 
the particular purposes to which they are 
to be applied. The business of making 
these vehicles is divided into a number 
of branches; but, as the manufacture of 
the coach embraces a greater variety of 
operations than any other species of car¬ 
riage, we have selected it as affording the 
best means of explaining the operations of 
the whole business. 

4. In large establishments for making 
coaches and other vehicles of the best 
workmanship, the operators confine theii 
attention to the execution of particular 
parts of the work: for example, one man 
makes the wheels, another the carriage 




























































































































































































THE WHEELWRIGHT. 


233 


and body, another fashions and applies the 
iron, another does the painting and polish¬ 
ing, and another the trimming. In small¬ 
er establishments, a greater proportion of 
the work is executed by one person. 

5. The wheels of the coach, as well as 
those of every other vehicle in which they 
are used, are composed of a hub, and seve¬ 
ral spokes and felloes. The hubs are com¬ 
monly made of a kind of tough wood, call¬ 
ed gum , which is reduced to the desired 
fo»*m in the lathe. The hole through the 
centre is made with a common auger, and 
enlarged with one tapering towards the 
point, and having through its whole length 
two cutting edges. The mortices for the 
spokes are made with a chisel driven with 
a mallet. 

6. The spokes are made of white oak, 
and the felloes of ash or hickory; and both 
are brought to the required form and 
smoothness with the saw, axe, drawing- 
knife, spoke-shave, chisel, and sand-paper. 
The constituent parts of the carriage or 
running gears are the axles, perch , and 
spring-beds or bolsters, to which are added 
the tongue or pole, and some other parts 
connected with it. 

7. The joints in this part of the vehicle 
are made perfectly tight by the application 
of putty; whereas, in the body, glue is 
used for this purpose. The latter substance 
will not answer in the former case, since 
it cannot bear exposure to water. The 
wood generally employed for the carriage 
part, as well as for the frame of the body, 
is ash; and the several parts are sawn 
from planks of suitable thickness. In this 
part of the work, the operator is guided 
by patterns made of thin pine boards. The 
panels of the body are made of thin boards 
of poplar or bass-wood. The manner in 
which the several parts are dressed and put 
together is too obvious to need description. I 

30 


8. The wheels and carriage, after hav¬ 
ing received one coat of paint, are sent to 
the blacksmith to be ironed. The hub is 
bound, at each end, with hoops of iron, 
commonly plated with brass or silver, and 
the outside rim or felloes are bound with 
an iron tire, and fastened with strong nails 
or spikes. The tires are made red-hot 
before they are applied, that they may be 
made to fit in every part with accuracy. 

9. Bands, bolts, or strips of iron, are ap¬ 
plied to those parts of the wood-work which 
may be exposed to friction, or which re¬ 
quire additional strength. The axles are 
also made of wrought iron, either by the 
blacksmith who executes the other iron 
work, or by persons who manufacture them 
by the quantity for sale. The same re¬ 
mark is applicable to the thorough-boxes, 
which are inserted into the hub to prevent 
injury by friction, and to cause the wheel 
to revolve with freedom and accuracy. 

10. The painting, varnishing, and polish¬ 
ing, of the body of the coach, when done 
in the best manner, embrace a tedious pro¬ 
cess. It is first covered with a coat of 
paint: the grain of the wood is then filled 
ed up with putty, and the surface is again 
covered with paint. Five coats of filling, 
composed of ochre, japan varnish, and 
spirits of turpentine, are next successively 
applied. After the surface has been rub¬ 
bed with a solid piece of pumice-stone, it 
is again painted, and rubbed with sand¬ 
paper. Several coats of paint are next 
laid on, and the work is finished by the 
application of a few coats of copal-var¬ 
nish, and by the use of pumice-stone. The 
painting and varnishing of the wheels and 
carriage part is far less expensive and 
tedious. 

11. The nature of the trimmings, and 
the manner in which they are put toge¬ 
ther and applied, need not be described, 

U 2 









I 


234 THE WHEELWRIGHT. 


since a few moments’ inspection of a finish¬ 
ed vehicle of this kind will give any one 
a clear conception of the whole of this 
branch of the business. So far as trim¬ 
ming the inside and the manufacture of 
cushions are concerned, the operations are 
similar to those of the upholsterer. 

12. Wheel carriages may be classed 
among the primitive inventions; although 
the first authentic notice we have of their 
use we find in the scripture history of Jo¬ 
seph, the son of Jacob, in which it is rela¬ 
ted that this great and good man “ was 
made to ride in the second chariot” of the 
king’s, and that he sent wagons from 
Egypt to convey thither his father and 
family from the land of Canaan. 

13. Covered wagons were used in the 
days of Moses; and the wandering Scy¬ 
thians, in the time of the Romans, had 
them covered with leather. The seat for 
the driver is said to have been invented by 
Oxylus, an iEtolian, who took possession 
of the kingdom of Elis, about 1100 years 
before Christ. Many of the nations of 
antiquity used chariots in the field of bat¬ 
tle, and the axles were sometimes armed 
with scythes, or some other sharp cutting 
instruments. Two persons commonly oc¬ 
cupied one vehicle, one of whom drove 
the horses, and the other fought the ene¬ 
my. The inhabitants of the promised land 
fought in chariots, even before the settle¬ 
ment of the people of Israel in that coun¬ 
try; and the Greeks likewise employed 
them, for warlike purposes, at the siege of 
Troy. 

14. The carriages used by the Romans 
were of various kinds, some of which were 
carried on the shoulders of men, and others, 
having two or four wheels, were drawn by 
horses, asses, mules, or oxen. Neverthe¬ 
less, neither they, nor any other nation of 
antiquity, ever suspended the body of any 


carriage on leathers, or supported it on 
springs; and the use of almost every spe¬ 
cies of vehicle for the conveyance of per¬ 
sons was banished by the policy of the 
barbarous nations that afterwards became 
masters of civilized Europe; the feudal 
lords conceiving it important that their 
military vassals should serve them on horse¬ 
back. 

15. Even as late as the sixteenth cen¬ 
tury, ministers rode to court, and magis¬ 
trates of imperial cities to council, on the 
back of this animal; and, in the same man¬ 
ner, kings and lords made their public 
entry on the most solemn occasions. In 
accounts of papal ceremonies which occur 
during several centuries, we find no men¬ 
tion of a state-coach; but, instead of it, 
state-horses or state-mules. The horse for 
his holiness was required to be a gentle 
and tractable nag, of a gray colour; and a 
stool with three steps was necessary to aid 
him in mounting. The emperor or kings, 
if present, held his stirrup, and led his 
beast. Bishops also made their public en¬ 
trance on horses or asses richly decorated. 

16. Covered carriages, however, were 
known in the principal states of Europe 
in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries; 
but they were at first used only by women 
of rank, since the men thought it disgrace¬ 
ful to ride in them. At this period, when 
the electors of the German empire did not 
choose to be present at the meetings of 
the states, they excused themselves to the 
emperor by stating that their health would 
not permit them to ride on horseback, and 
it was not becoming for them to ride like 
women. 

17. But, for a long time, the use of car¬ 
riages was forbidden even to women; and, 
as late as the year 1545, the wife of a cer¬ 
tain duke obtained from him, with great 
difficulty, the privilege of using a covered 








THE WHEELWRIGHT. 


235 


carriage, in a journey to the baths. The 
permission was granted on the condition 
that her attendants should not enjoy the 
same favour. Nevertheless, it is certain 
that emperors, kings, and princes, began 
to employ covered carriages on journeys, 
in the fifteenth century; and a few in¬ 
stances occur of their use in public solem¬ 
nities. Ambassadors appeared, for the first 
time, in coaches, at a public solemnity, in 
1613, at Erfurth. 

16. In the history of France, we find 
many proofs that, in the fourteenth, fif¬ 
teenth, and sixteenth, centuries, the French 
monarchs commonly rode on horses, the 
servants of the court on mules, and the prin¬ 
cesses, together with the principal ladies, 
sometimes at least, on asses. Carriages 
of some sort, however, appear to have been 
used at a very early period there. An or¬ 
dinance of Philip the Fair, issued in 1294, 
forbids their use by the wives of citizens. 

19. In the year 1550, three coaches 
were introduced into Paris; one of which 
belonged to the queen, another to Diana 
de Poictiers, and the third to Raimond de 
Laval, a cavalier of the court of Francis I. 
who was so large that no horse could carry 
him. It is not certain, however, that the 
body of these vehicles were suspended on 
leather straps. The inventor of this ma¬ 
terial improvement cannot be ascertained, 
nor is it positively determined that it had 
been made, until about the middle of the 
seventeenth century. 

20. Coaches were introduced into Spain 
and Portugal in the year 1546; and into 
Sweden near the close of the same centu¬ 
ry. In the capital of Russia, there were 
elegant coaches as early as the beginning 
of the seventeenth century. In Switzer¬ 
land, they were rare as late as 1650. Car¬ 
riages began to be used at Naples in the 
thirteenth century; from this place they 


spread all ove r Italy; and here, also, glass 
panels originated. 

21. Carriages of some sort were used 
in England at a very early period, and those 
first employed by the ladies were called 
whirlicoats. According to some authors, 
coaches were introduced in the year 1555; 
but, according to others, not until twenty- 
five years after this period. Before the 
latter date. Queen Elizabeth, on public 
occasions, rode on the same horse with her 
chamberlain, seated behind him on a pil¬ 
lion; although, in the early part of her 
reign, she owned a chariot. 

22. In 1601, men were forbidden the 
use of the coach by act of Parliament, the 
legislators supposing such indulgence to 
be too effeminate; but this law seems to 
have been little regarded, as this vehicle 
was in common use about the year 1605. 
Twenty years after this time, hackney 
coaches began to ply in London; but 
these were prohibited in 1635, on the 
alleged ground that the support of so many 
horses increased the expense of keeping 
those belonging to the king. Two years af¬ 
ter this, however, fifty coaches were licens¬ 
ed, and in 1770 there were one thousand. 

23. The stage coach was first employed 
in France, and was introduced into Eng¬ 
land near the middle of the eighteenth 
century by Jethro Tull, the celebrated agri¬ 
culturist. They were not employed, in 
any country, in the transportation of the 
mail, until the year 1784. Before this 
time, it was carried chiefly on horseback. 

24. In the United States, the manufac¬ 
ture of carriages of every kind has greatly 
increased within a few years, and those 
lately made exhibit many improvements 
on those of former periods. The places 
which seem to be most distinguished for the 
manufacture of good carriages in this coun¬ 
try ar« Philadelphia, Newark, and Troy. 











1. Ti<e artisan called the potter con¬ 
verts plastic materials into hard and brittle 
vessels of various kinds, denominated, in 
general terms, earthen ware. 

2. Alumine is the basis of all clays, and 
is the only earth that possesses the degree 
of plasticity which renders the operations 
of the potter practicable. It is, however, 
never found or used in a pure state, but in 
combination with other substances, par¬ 
ticularly with silex, lime, magnesia, and 
the oxyde of iron. 

3. In the manufacture of vessels from 
argillaceous compounds, the different de¬ 
grees of beauty and costliness depend upon 
the quality of the raw materials, and the 
labour and skill expended in the operation. 
The various productions of the pottery may 
be classed under the following denominu- 

w 


tions—common earthen ware, white earth¬ 
en ware, stone ware, and porcelain; but 
of each of these, there are many varie¬ 
ties. 

4. Common earthen ware. This ware is 
made of a kind of clay very generally dif¬ 
fused over the earth, and which is essen¬ 
tially the same with that employed in 
making bricks. The potters are often sup¬ 
plied with this material by the brickma- 
kers, who select for them that which is too 
tenacious, or fat, for their own purpose. 
All common clays contain more or less of 
the oxyde of iron, which causes the wares 

j made of them to turn red in burning. 

_ © 

5. In preparing the clay for use, the 

potter adds to it, when necessary, a portion 
i of fine loam, in order to lessen its tenaci- 
i ty, and to prevent the vessels to be made 










































































































































































THE POTTER. 


237 


ot it from cracking while undergoing the 
fire. \\ hen the materials have been mix¬ 
ed, and partially incorporated with water, 
the mass is thrown into a tub, fixed in the 
ground about one-half of its depth. In the 
centre ot this tub, is placed a shaft, in a 
perpendicular position, fiom which radiate 
in a horizontal direction a number of knives 
or cutters. 

6. This machine is put in motion by 
horse-power, and by it the clay is repeat¬ 
edly cut, and properly kneaded. The work¬ 
man then cuts it into thin slices with a 
small wire, and having rejected all matters 
not fit for his purpose, he further kneads it 
with his hands, and forms it into lumps 
corresponding in amount of matter with 
the different vessels which he proposes to 
make. 

7. For the best kinds of this ware, the 
same species of clay is used; but then it 
is differently prepared. It is first dissolved 
in water; and when the coarser particles 
have settled to the bottom of the vessel, 
the fluid suspending the rest is drawn off, 
and made to pass through a sieve into a 
reservoir. After the particles of the ma¬ 
terial have precipitated, the water is drawn 
off, and the residuum is thrown upon a 
large flat pan or reservoir made of bricks, 
where the mass is freed from its superflu¬ 
ous moisture by evaporation in the air, or 
by means of artificial heat applied beneath. 
It is then laid by in a damp place, for fu¬ 
ture use. 

8. Before the clay, thus purified from 
extraneous and coarser particles, is formed 
into vessels, it is beaten with a stout piece 
of wood, until the mass has become of an 
equal consistence throughout, and then re¬ 
peatedly cut into two pieces with a wire, 
and slapped together to expel the air. The 
former of these operations is called wedg¬ 
ing, and the latter slapping. 


9. While and cream-coloured wares are 
made of clays which contain so little oxyde 

! of iron that it does not turn red in burnino-. 

£3 * 

but, on the contrary, improves in white¬ 
ness in the furnace. There are several 
species of white clay, found in many dif¬ 
ferent localities, most of which, however, 
are known under the denomination of pipe¬ 
clay; or they are distinguished by the 
names of the places where they are ob¬ 
tained. 

10. In preparing these clays for use, 
they are reduced to a minute division by 
machinery, and afterwards dissolved in 
water, and otherwise treated in a manner 
similar to that used for the better kinds of 
common wares, as described in the seventh 
and eighth paragraphs. For the purpose of 
diminishing the shrinkage in the fire, and 
with the view of increasing the whiteness 
of the ware, pulverized flint-stone is added 
to the clay, in the proportion of about one 
part of the former to five of the latter. 

11. In reducing the silex to the requi¬ 
site fineness, it is first brought to a red 
heat; and, while in this state, it is thrown 
into cold water, to diminish the cohesion 
of its parts. It is then pounded by ma¬ 
chinery, levigated with water in a mill, 
sifted, mashed, and otherwise treated like 
the clay. The materials are mixed while 
in a state of thin pulp. 

12. The several operations performed 
by the potter in converting the clay, thus 
prepared, into different kinds of vessels, 
and in completing the whole process of 
the manufacture of earthen ware, may be 
included under the following divisions, viz. 
throwing, turning, pressing, burning, paint¬ 
ing and printing, and glazing. They are 
not, however, all used in producing and 
finishing vessels of every shape and quality. 

13. Throwing. This operation is per¬ 
formed on a potter’s wheel, which consists 


















238 


THE POTTER 


of a round table, and some simple means 
to put it in motion. The clay having been 
placed on the centre of this machine, the 
workman communicates to the latter a ro¬ 
tary motion with his foot, and gives the 
proposed form to the material with his 
hands, which have been previously wet 
with water, to prevent them from sticking. 
This method is used for all vessels and 
parts of vessels of a circular form; and, 
in many cases, no other operation is neces¬ 
sary to give them the requisite finish, so 
far as their conformation is concerned. 

14. Turning. The vessels are cut from 
the thrower’s wheel with a small wire; 
and when, by the evaporation of moisture, 
they have become firm enough to endure 
the operation, they are turned on a lathe. 
The objects of this operation are to com¬ 
municate to them a more exact shape, and 
to render them more uniform in thickness. 
The potter’s wheel, with the addition of 
some contrivance to hold the pieces in a 
proper position, is frequently used for turn¬ 
ing. The coarser kinds of common wares 
are never turned. 

15. Pressing. Vessels, or parts of ves¬ 
sels, which are of an irregular shape, and 
which cannot be formed on the wheel, are 
usually made by a process called pressing. 
This kind of work is executed in moulds 
made of plaster of Paris, and these are 
formed on models of clay or wood, which 
have been made in the exact shape of the 
proposed vessel. Sometimes individual 
specimens of the wares of one country or 
pottery are used as models in another; in 
such cases, the expense of the moulds is 
considerably diminished. 

16. The moulds frequently consist of 
several parts, which fit accurately toge¬ 
ther ; for example, the mould for a pitcher 
is composed of two pieces for the sides, 
and one for the bottom. In forming a 


pitcher in such a mould, the material, 
which has been spread out to a proper and 
uniform thickness, is laid upon the inside 
of each portion of it, and the superfluous 
clay is trimmed off* with a knife. The 
mould is then closed, and thin strips of 
clay are laid over the seams: the removal 
of the several pieces of the mould, com¬ 
pletes the operation. 

17. Handles, spouts, figures in relief, 
and other additions of this nature, are se< 
parately made in moulds, and stuck on 
the vessels with the same kind of mate¬ 
rials, sometimes mingled with a small pro¬ 
portion of plaster of Paris. These appen¬ 
dages are added after the vessels have be- 
come partially solid in the air. 

18. Burning. All vessels, even after 
they have been dried in the atmosphere, 
are in a very frangible state; and, to ren¬ 
der them sufficiently firm for use, they are 
submitted to the process of burning in a 
kiln. To preserve the ware from injury 
while enduring the fire, the several pieces 
are inclosed in cylindrical boxes called 
saggers, which are made of baked clay. 
These boxes are placed one above another 
around the sides of the kiln, which is of a 
circular form, and gradually tapering to 
the top. 

19. In burning the coarser wares, every 
piece is not thus inclosed; but between 
every two saggers, a naked piece is placed. 
A moderate fire is first raised, which is 
gradually increased, until the contents of 
the kiln are brought to a red heat. The 
burning occupies between twenty-four ana 
forty-eight hours. All wares, except the 
coarsest kinds, are twice, and sometimes 
thrice, burned; and, after having been once 
submitted to the process, they are said to 
be in a state of biscuit. 

20. Painting and printing. When the 
vessels are to be ornamented with colours, 








THE POTTER. 


239 


it is necessary, in most cases, that this 
part of the work be done after the first 
burning. Tn China, and at the porcelain 
manufactory in Philadelphia, the drawings 
are executed by hand with a pencil: the 
same method is used in Europe, in elabo¬ 
rate pieces of workmanship. But in the 
common figured wares, where but one co¬ 
lour is used, the designs are first engraved 
on metallic plates, and impressions are ta¬ 
ken from them on thin paper, by means of 
a copper-plate printing-press. 

21. In transferring to vessels designs 
thus produced, the paper, while in a damp 
state, is applied closely to the surface of 
the biscuit, and rubbed on with a piece of 
flannel. The porosity of the earthen ma¬ 
terial causes the immediate absorption of 
the colouring matter, which, in all cases, 
is some metallic oxyde. For a blue colour, 
the oxyde of cobalt is used; and for a black, 
those of manganese and iron. The paper 
is washed from the ware with a sponge. 

22. Glazing. To prevent the penetra¬ 
tion of fluids, and to improve the appear¬ 
ance of the ware, a superficial vitreous 
coating is necessary. This can be pro¬ 
duced by the aid of various substances; 
but, in a majority of cases, red lead is the 
basis of the mixture employed for this pur¬ 
pose. Equal parts of ground flints and red 
lead are used for the common cream-co¬ 
loured wares. These materials are mixed 
with, and suspended in, water, and each 
piece is dipped in the liquid. The mois¬ 
ture is soon absorbed by the clay, leaving 
the glazing particles on the surface, which, 
in the burning that follows, is converted 
into a uniform and durable vitreous coat¬ 
ing. 

23. Stone ware. The materials of this 
ware, as well as the mode of preparing 
them, differ but little from those of the 
common and better kinds of earthen wares. 


The clays, however, which contain but 
little or no oxyde of iron are chosen, since 
this substance would cause the ware to 
melt and warp before a sufficient degree 
of heat could be applied to give it the re¬ 
quisite hardness. 

24. The glazing is formed by a vitrifi¬ 
cation of the surface of the vessels, caused 
by the action of common salt thrown into 
the kiln, when it has been raised to its 
greatest heat. This glazing is more per¬ 
fect than that on ordinary earthen wares, 
being insoluble in most chemical agents. 
It is hardly necessary to remark that this 
method of glazing precludes the use of 
saggers. 

25. Porcelain. This ware exceeds every 
other kind in the delicacy of its texture, 
and is peculiarly distinguished by a beau¬ 
tiful semi-transparency, which is conspicu¬ 
ous when held against the light. In China, 
it is made chiefly of two kinds of earth; 
one of which is denominated petuntze, and 
the other kaolin; but both are varieties 
of felspar, found in the mountains, in dif¬ 
ferent localities. They are brought to the 
manufactories from a distance in the form 
of bricks; the materials, as taken from the 
mines, having been reduced to an impal¬ 
pable powder in mortars, either by the la¬ 
bour of men or by water-power. 

26. These materials are combined in 
different proportions in the manufacture, 
according to the quality of the proposed 
ware. In the best kind, equal quantities 
are used; but for those of inferior quality, 
a greater proportion of petuntze is employ¬ 
ed. The translucency so much admired 
in porcelain, or tseki y as the Chinese call 
it, is owing to the petuntze, which, in 
burning,, partially melts, and envelopes the 
infusible kaolin. 

27. It is not known who was the invent¬ 
or of porcelain, as the Chinese annals are 











240 


THE POTTER. 


silent with regard to this point; nor do we 
know more of the date at which the manu¬ 
facture was commenced. It is certain, 
however, that it must have been before 
the fifth century of the Christian era. 
Since this ware has been known to Euro¬ 
peans, it has been manufactured chiefly, 
and in the greatest perfection, in the large 
and populous village of King-te-ching. 

28. Porcelain was first brought to Eu¬ 
rope from Japan and China, and for a long 
time its materials and mode of manufac¬ 
ture remained a secret, in spite of the ef¬ 
forts of the Jesuit missionaries, who resi¬ 
ded in those countries. At length, in 1712, 
father Entrecolles sent home to France, 
specimens of petuntze and kaolin, toge¬ 
ther with a summary description of the 
process of the manufacture. 

29. Shortly after this important event 
had transpired, it was discovered that ma¬ 
terials nearly of the same kind existed in 
abundance in various parts of Europe. The 
manufacture of porcelain was, therefore, 
soon commenced in several places; and it 
has since been successfully carried on. 

30. The porcelain wares of Europe are 
superior to those of the Chinese, in the 
variety and elegance of their forms, as 
well as in the beauty of the designs exe¬ 
cuted upon them; but as some of the pro¬ 
cesses, successfully practised in China, re¬ 
main still to be learned by the Europeans, 
the oriental porcelain has not yet been 
equalled in the hardness, strength, and 
durability of its body, and in the perma¬ 
nency of its glaze. The manufacturers of 
Saxony are said to have been the most suc¬ 
cessful in their imitations in these respects. 

31. The porcelain earths are found in 
various parts of the United States, but 
particularly at Wilmington, in the state 
of Delaware. Nevertheless, there is now 
but one porcelain manufactory in our coun¬ 


try, and this is yet in its infancy. The es¬ 
tablishment is located in Philadelphia, and 
it has been lately incorporated, with the pri¬ 
vilege of one hundred thousand dollars 
capital. 

32. The principle of induration by heat, 
is the same in the manufacture of earthen 
wares as in making bricks; and as the lat¬ 
ter can be more easily dispensed with than 
the former in a primitive state of society, 
it is but reasonable to suppose that earthen 
ware was first invented: but the art of 
making bricks must have been practised 
before the deluge, or the posterity of Noah 
would not have attempted so soon as about 
one hundred years after that catastrophe, 
to build a city and a tower of these mate¬ 
rials. It is, therefore, evident that this 
art was of antediluvian origin; and it 
was probably one of the earliest brought 
to any degree of perfection. 

33. The art of the potter was practised 
more or less by every nation of antiquity, 
and the degree of perfection to which it 
was carried in every country corresponded 
with the state of the arts generally. The 
Greeks were consequently very celebrated 
for their earthen wares. The Etruscans 
have also been particularly noted for their 
manufacture of the elegant vases which 
have been dug, in modern times, from the 
depositories of the dead, in Lower Italy. 

34. Until the commencement of the 
manufacture of porcelain in Europe, this 
art continued in a very rude condition, al¬ 
though practised to a considerable extent 
in many places. It was much improved in 
England about the year 1720, by the addi¬ 
tion of flints to the usual material; and, be¬ 
tween thirty and forty years after this, it 
was brought to great perfection, in all its 
branches, chiefly through the scientific ex¬ 
ertions of the celebrated potter, Josiah 
Wedgewood. 









1. Glass is a substance produced from 
a combination of silicious earths with al¬ 
kalies, and, in many cases, with metallic 
oxides. The basis of every species of 
glass is silex, which is found in a state 
nearly pure in the sands of many situa¬ 
tions. It is also found in the common 
flints and quartz pebbles. 

2. When quartz pebbles or flints are em¬ 
ployed, they must be first reduced to pow¬ 
der. This is done by grinding them in a mill, 
after they have been partially reduced, by 
heating them in the fire, and plunging them 
into cold water. Sand has the advantage of 
being already in a state of division sufficient¬ 
ly minute for the purpose. To prepare it for 
application, it only requires to be washed 
and sifted, in order to free it from the argil¬ 
laceous and other substances unfit for use. 

31 


A great proportion of the sand employed 
in the manufacture of the better kinds of 
glass in the United States, is taken from 
the banks of the Delaware river. 

3. The alkaline substances used are pot¬ 
ash and soda. For the finer kinds of glass, 
pearlash, or soda procured by decomposing 
sea-salt, is used; but, for the inferior sorts, 
impure alkalies, such as barilla, Scotch and 
Irish kelp, and even wood-ashes, as well 
as the refuse of the soap-boiler’s kettle, 
are made to answer the purpose. Lime, 
borax, and common salt, are also frequent¬ 
ly used as a flux in aid of some of the other 
substances just mentioned. 

4. Of the metallic oxides which make 
a part of the materials of some glass, the 
deutoxide of lead, or, as it is usually de¬ 
nominated, red lead, is the most common, 

V 



















































































242 


THE GLASS-BLOWER. 


This substance is employed in making flint 
glass, which is rendered by it more fusi¬ 
ble, heavy and tough, and more easy to be 
ground and cut, while, at the same time, 
it increases its brilliancy and refractive 
power. 

5. Black oxide of manganese is also 
used in small quantities, with the view of 
rendering the glass more colourless and 
transparent. Common nitre produces the 
same effect. White arsenic is also added 
wO the materials of this kind of glass, to 
promote its clearness; but if too much is 
used, it communicates a milky whiteness. 
The use of this substance in drinking ves¬ 
sels is not free from danger, when the glass 
contains so much alkali as to render any 
part of it soluble in acids. 

6. The furnace in which the materials 
are melted is a large conical stack, such 
as is represented at the head of this arti¬ 
cle. In some cases, it is surrounded by a 
large chimney, which extends above the 
roof of the building. In the sides are se¬ 
veral apertures, near which are placed the 
crucibles, or melting pots, containing the 
materials. The fuel is applied in an arch, 
which is considerably lower than the sur¬ 
face of the ground on which the operators 
stand, while at work. 

7. The melting pots are made chiefly 
of the most refractory clays and sand. 
Much of the clay used for this purpose, in 
many of the glass-houses in the United 
States, is imported from Germany. The 
materials, having been sifted, and mixed 
with a suitable quantity of water, the ho¬ 
mogeneous mass is formed into crucibles, 
by spreading it on the inside of vessels 
much in the shape of a common wash tub. 
After the clay has become sufficiently solid 
to sustain itself, the hoops are removed 
from the vessel, and the severaJ staves 
taken apart. 


8. The crucibles are suffered to dry in 
the atmosphere for two or three months; 
after which they are applied to use as they 
may be needed. Before they are placed 
in the main furnace, they are gradually 
raised to an intense heat in one of smaller 
dimensions, built for this express purpose. 
The fuel employed in fusing the metal 
is chiefly pine wood, which, in all cases, 
is previously dried in a large oven. Four 
of the five furnaces near Philadelphia, 
belonging to Doctor Dyott, are heated 
with rosin. 

9. The materials having been mixed, in 
the proposed proportions, which are deter¬ 
mined by weight, they are thrown into the 
melting pots, and, by a gradually increas¬ 
ing heat, reduced to a paste, suitable for 
application by the blower. This part of 
the process is commonly performed at 
night, while the blowers are absent from 
the works. 

10. The applications of glass are so ex¬ 
ceedingly extensive, that it is inconvenient, 
if not impossible, to manufacture every spe¬ 
cies of it at one glass-house, or at one es¬ 
tablishment. Some, therefore, confine their 
attention to the production of window glass, 
and such articles of hollow ware as may 
be made, with profit, from the same kind 
of paste. Others make vials and other 
species of ware, employed by the drug¬ 
gist, apothecary, and chemist. And again, 
the efforts, at some factories, are confined 
entirely to the manufacture of flint glass, 
or to that of plate glass for mirrors. 

11. The principal operations connected 
with the manufacture of different species 
of glass, after the paste has been prepared, 
may be included under the following 
heads: viz. blowing, casting, moulding, 
pressing and grinding; although all these 
are never performed in one and the same 
establishment. 








THE GLASS-BLOWER. 


243 


12. Bloicing. The operation of blowing 
is nearly or quite the same in the produc¬ 
tion of every species of glass ware, in 
which it is employed. The manipulations, 
however, connected with making different 
articles, are considerably varied, to suit 
their particular conformation. This cir¬ 
cumstance renders it impossible for us to 
give more than a general outline of the 
process of this manufacture. 

13. In the formation of window glass, 
the workman gathers upon the end of an 
iron tube a sufficient amount of the metal, 
which he brings to a cylindrical form by 
rolling it upon a cast iron or stone table. 
He then blows through the tube with con¬ 
siderable force, and thus expands the glass 
to the form of an inflated bladder. The 
inflation is assisted by the heat, which 
causes the air and moisture of the breath 
to expand with great power. 

14. Whenever the glass has become too 
stiff, by cooling, for inflation, it is again 
softened by holding it in the blaze of the 
fuel, and the blowing is repeated, until 
the globe has been expanded to the requi¬ 
site thinness. Another workman next 
receives it at the other end, upon an iron 
rod, called a punt , or punting iron , while 
the blowing iron is detached. It is now 
opened, and spread into a smooth sheet, by 
the centrifugal force acquired by the rapid 
whirl given to it, in the manner exhibited 
in the preceding cut. The sheet thus pro¬ 
duced is of a uniform thickness, except at 
the centre, where the iron rod had been 
attached. 

15. An inferior kind of window glass, 
the materials of which are sand, kelp, and 
soap-boilers’ waste, is made by blowing the 
metal into cones, about a foot in diameter 
at their base; and these, while hot, are 
touched on one side with a cold iron dip¬ 
ped in water. This produces a crack, 


which runs through the whole length of 
the cone. The glass then expands into a 
sheet somewhat resembling a fan. This 
is supposed to be the oldest method of 
manufacturing window or plate glass. 

16. The window glass produced in the 
manner first described, is called irown 
glass; and the other, broad glass. But 
by neither of these methods can the 
largest panes be produced. The blowing 
for these differs from the methods just de¬ 
scribed, in that the material is blown into 
an irregular cylinder, which is immediate¬ 
ly cut with shears on one side, while the 
glass is still in an elastic state. The ma¬ 
terial thus treated is laid upon a flat sur¬ 
face, where it expands into a uniform plate 
of equal thickness throughout. 

17. Casting. Plate glass formed by 
the method last mentioned, is denominated 
cylinder glass; and it is used not only for 
windows, but also for mirrors not exceed¬ 
ing four feet in length. Plates of greater 
dimensions are produced by a process call¬ 
ed casting. The casting is performed by 
pouring the material, in a high state of 
fusion, upon a table of polished copper of 
large size, and having a rim elevated 
above its general surface, as high as the 
proposed plate. To spread the glass per¬ 
fectly, and to render the two surfaces 
parallel, a heavy roller of polished copper, 
resting upon the rim at the edges, is pass¬ 
ed over it. 

18. Plates thus cast are always dull and 
uneven. To render them good reflectors, 
it is necessary to grind and polish them. 
The plate to be polished is first cemented, 
with plaster of Paris, to a table of wood 
or stone. A quantity of wet sand, emory, 
or pulverized flints, is spread upon it, and 
another glass plate, similarly cemented to 
a wooden or stone surface, is placed upon it. 
The two plates are then rubbed together 











244 


THE GLASS-BLOWER. 


until their surfaces have become plane and 
smooth. The last polish is given by col- 
cothar and putty. Both sides are polished 
in the same manner. 

19. Moulding. Ornamental forms and 
letters are produced on the external sur¬ 
face of vessels, by means of metallic 
moulds; and the process by which this 
kind of work is performed is called mould¬ 
ing. In the execution, the workman ga¬ 
thers upon the end of his iron tube, a pro¬ 
per amount of the material, which he ex¬ 
tends, and brings to a cylindrical form, by 
rolling it upon his table. He then expands 
it a little by a slight blast, and afterwards 
lets it down into the mould, which is im¬ 
mediately filled by blowing still stronger 
through the tube. 

20. The vessel is then taken from the 
mould, and disengaged from the tube. The 
same tube, or a punting iron having been 
attached to the bottom, the other end is 
softened in the fire, and brought to the 
proposed form with appropriate tools, while 
the iron is being rolled up and down upon 
the long arms of the glass-blower’s chair. 
The ornamental moulds are made of cast 
iron, brass, or copper, and are composed 
of two parts, which open and shut upon 
hinges. The moulds for plain vials, cas¬ 
tor oil bottles, small demijohns, &c., are 
made of the kind of clay used for the cru¬ 
cibles. These consist merely of a mass 
of the clay, with a cylindrical hole in it 
of proper diameter and depth. 

21. Pressing. This process is applied 
in the production of vessels or articles 
which are very thick, and which are not 
contracted at the top. The operation is 
performed in iron moulds, which consist 
of two parts, and which have upon their 
internal surfaces the figures to be impress¬ 
ed upon the glass. The material, while 
in an elastic condition, is put into the lower 


part of the mould; and the other part, 
called the follower , is immediately brought 
upon it with considerable force. 

22. Every species of glass, before it can 
be used with safety, must be annealed , to 
diminish its brittleness. The annealing 
consists merely in letting down the tem¬ 
perature by degrees. Small boys, there¬ 
fore, convey the articles, whatever they 
may be, as fast as they are made, to a 
moderately heated oven, which, when fill¬ 
ed, is suffered to cool by degrees. 

23. Cutting. The name of cut glass is 
given to the kind which is ground and 
polished in figures, appearing as if cut 
with a sharp instrument. This operation 
is confined chiefly to flint glass, which, 
being more tough and soft than the other 
kinds, is more easily wrought. In addition 
to this, it is considerably more brilliant, 
producing specimens of greater lustre. 

24. An establishment for grinding glass 
contains a great number of wheels of cast 
iron, stone, and wood, of different sizes; 
and the process consists entirely in holding 
the glass against these, while they are 
revolving with rapidity. When a consid¬ 
erable portion of the material is to be re¬ 
moved, the grinding is commonly com¬ 
menced on the iron wheel, on which is 
constantly pouring water and sharp sand, 
from a vessel above, which, from its shape, 
is called a hopper. 

25. The period of the invention of glass 
is quite unknown; but the following is the 
usual story of its origin. Some merchants, 
driven by a storm upon the coasts of Phoe¬ 
nicia, near the river Bel us, kindled a fire 
on the sand to cook their victuals, using 
as fuel some weeds which grew near. The 
ashes produced by the incineration of these 
plants, coming in contact with the sand, 
united with its particles, and, by the influ 
ence of the heat, produced glass. 












THE GLASS-BLOWER. 


245 


2G. This production was accidentally 
picked up by a Tyrian merchant, who, 
from its beauty and probable utility, was 
led to investigate the causes of its forma¬ 
tion; and who, after many attempts, suc¬ 
ceeded in the manufacture of glass. The 
legend probably originated in the fact, 
that glass was very anciently made at 
I'yre; and that the sand on the sea-shore 
in the immediate neighbourhood of the Be- 
lus, was well adapted to glass-making. 

27. It is certainly probable that an acci¬ 
dental vitrification might have given rise to 
the discovery; but the circumstance would 
have been more likely to take place in some 
operation requiring greater heat than that 
necessary for dressing food in the open air. 
The invention of glass must have been 
effected as early as fifteen hundred years 
before our era. It was manufactured very 
anciently in Egypt; but whether that coun¬ 
try or Phoenicia is entitled to the prefer¬ 
ence, as regards priority in the practice 
of this art, cannot be determined. 

28. Glass was made in considerable per¬ 
fection at Alexandria, and was thence sup¬ 
plied to the Romans as late as the first quar¬ 
ter of the second century. Before this time, 
hovyever, Rome had her glass manufacto¬ 
ries, to which a particular street was as¬ 
signed. The attention of the workmen 

© 

was directed chiefly to the production of 
bottles and ornamental vases; specimens 
of which still remain, as monuments of 
their extraordinary skill. 

29. In more modern times, the manu¬ 
facture of glass was confined principally 
to Italy and Germany. Venice became 
particularly celebrated for the beauty of 
the material, and the skill of its workmen; 
and as early as the thirteenth century, it 


supplied the greatest part of the glass used 
in Europe. The artists of Bohemia, also, 
came to be held in considerable reputa¬ 
tion. 

BO. The art was first practised in Eng¬ 
land in the year 1557, when a manufactory 
was erected at Crutched Friars, in the city 
of London; and shortly afterwards, another 
at the Savoy in the Strand. In these es¬ 
tablishments, however, were made little 
else than common window-glass, and coarse 
bottles; all the finer articles being still im¬ 
ported from Venice. In 1G73, the cele¬ 
brated Duke of Buckingham brought work¬ 
men from Italy, and established a manu¬ 
factory for casting plate-glass for mirrors 
and coach-windows. The art in all its 
branches is now extensively practised in 
great perfection, not only in Great Britain, 
but in many of the other kingdoms of Eu¬ 
rope. 

31. Before the commencement of the 
late war with England, very little, if any, 
glass was manufactured in the United 
States, except the most common window- 
glass, and the most ordinary kinds of hol¬ 
low-ware. Apothecaries’ vials and bottles, 
as well as every other variety of the better 
kinds of glass-wares, had been imported 
from Europe, and chiefly from England. 

32. Our necessities, created by the event 
just mentioned, soon produced several man¬ 
ufactories, which, however, did not soon 
become flourishing; owing, at first, to in¬ 
experience, and, after the peace, to exces¬ 
sive importations. But adequate protection 
having been extended to this branch of our 
national industry, by the tariff of 1828, it 
is now in a highly prosperous condition— 
so much so, that importations of glass-ware 
have nearly ceased. 


V 2 











1. The word optician is applicable to 
persons who are particularly skilled in the 
science of vision; but especially to those 
who devote their attention to the manufac¬ 
ture of optical instruments; such as—the 
spectacles, the camera obscura, the magic 
lantern, the telescope, the microscope, and 
the quadrant. 

2. Light is an emanation from the sun 
and other luminous bodies; and is that sub¬ 
stance which renders opaque bodies visible 
to the eye. It diverges in a direct line, 
unless interrupted by some obstacle, and 
its motion has been estimated at two hun¬ 
dred thousand miles in a second. 

3. A ray of light is the motion of a sin¬ 
gle particle; and a parcel of rays passing 
from a single point is called a pencil of 
rays. Parallel rays are such as always 


[ move at the same distance from each other. 
Rays which continually approach each 
other are said to converge; and when 
! they continually recede from each other, 
they are said to diverge. The pointy at 
which converging rays meet is called the 
focus. 

4. Any pellucid or transparent body, as 
air, water, and glass, which admits the 
free passage of light, is called a medium. 
When rays, after having passed through 
one medium, are bent out of their original 
course by entering another of different 
density, they are said to be refracted; and 
when they strike against a surface, and 
are sent back from it, they are said to be 
reflected. 

5. A lens is glass ground in such a form 
as to collect or disperse the rays of light 



























































































THE OPTICIAN. 


247 


which pass through it. These are of dif¬ 
ferent shapes; and they have, therefore, 
received different appellations. A plano¬ 
convex lens has one side flat, and the other 
convex: a plano-concave lens is flat on one 
side, and concave on the other: a double 
convex lens is convex on both sides: a dou¬ 
ble concave lens is concave on both sides: 
a meniscus is convex on one side, and con¬ 
cave on the other. By the following cut, 
the lenses are exhibited in the order in 
which they have been mentioned. 



6. An incident ray is that which comes 
from any luminous body to a reflecting 
surface; and that which is sent back from 
a reflecting surface is called a reflected 
ray. The angle of incidence is the angle 
which is formed by the incident ray with 
a perpendicular to the reflecting surface; 
and the angle of reflection is the angle 
formed by the same perpendicular and the 
reflected ray. 

7. When the light proceeding from 
every point of an object placed before a 
lens is collected in corresponding points 
behind it, a perfect image of the object is 
there produced. The following cut is given 
by way of illustration. 



8. The lens, <z, may be supposed to be 
placed in the hole of a window-shutter of 
a darkened room, and the arrow at the right 
to be standing at some distance without. 

o 


All the light reflected from the latter 
object towards the lens, passes through it, 
and concentrates, within the room, in a 
focal point; at which, if a sheet of paper, 
or any other plane of a similar colour, be 
placed, the image of the object will be 
seen upon it. 

9. This phenomenon is called the came¬ 
ra obscura , or dark chamber, because it is 
necessary to darken the room to exhibit it. 
The image at the focal point within the 
room is in an inverted position. The rea¬ 
son why it is thrown in this manner will 
be readily understood by observing the di¬ 
rection of the reflected rays, as they pass 
from the object through the lens. In the 
camera obscura, it is customary to place 
a small mirror immediately behind the 
lens, so as to throw all the light which 
enters, downwards upon a whitened table, 
where the picture may be conveniently 
contemplated. 

10. From the preceding explanation of 
the camera obscura, the theory of vision 
may be readily comprehended, since the 
eye itself is a perfect instrument of this 
kind. A careful examination of the follow¬ 
ing representation of the eye will render 
the similarity obvious. The eye is sup¬ 
posed to be cut through the middle, from 
above downwards. 



a a, the sclerotica ; b b, the choroidcs ; c c, the retina ; d d, the cor¬ 
nea ; e , the pupil; f f, the iris ; g, the aqueous humour; h, the 
crystalline humour ; i i, the vitreous humour 

11. The sclerotica is a membranous 
coat, to which the muscles are attached 
which move the eye. The cornea is united 
to the sclerotica around the circular open- 
























248 


THE OPTICIAN. 


ing of the latter, and is that convex part 
of the eye, which projects in advance of 
the rest of the organ. The space between 
this and the crystalline lens is occupied by 
the aqueous humour and the iris. The iris 
is united to the choroides, and it possesses 
the power of expanding and contracting, 
to admit a greater or less number of rays. 

12. The crystalline lens is a small body 
of a crystalline appearance and lenticular 
shape, whence its name. It is situated 
between the aqueous and vitreous hu¬ 
mours, and consists of a membranous sack 
filled with a humour of a crystalline ap¬ 
pearance. The vitreous humour has been 
thus denominated on account of its resem¬ 
blance to glass in a state of fusion. The 
retina is a membrane which lines the 
whole cavity of the eye, and is formed 
chiefly, if not entirely, by the expansion 
of the optic nerve. 

13. The rays of light which proceed from 
objects pass through the cornea, aqueous hu¬ 
mour, crystalline lens, and vitreous humour, 
and fall upon the retina in a focal point, 
to which it is brought chiefly by the influ¬ 
ence of the cornea and the crystalline lens. 
The image, in an inverted position, is 
painted or thrown on the cornea, which 
perceives its presence, and conveys an im¬ 
pression of it to the brain, by means of the 
optic nerve. 

14. Optical instruments. The art of 
constructing optical instruments is found¬ 
ed upon the anatomical structure, and 
physiological action of the eye, and on the 
laws of light. They are designed to in¬ 
crease the powers of the eye, or to remedy 
some defect in its structure. In the cur¬ 
sory view which we may give of a few of 
the many optical instruments which have 
been invented, we will begin with the 
spectacles ; since they are best known, 
and withal the most simple. 


15. The visual point , or the distance at 
which small objects can be distinctly seen, 
varies in different individuals. As an ave¬ 
rage, it may be assumed at eight or nine 
inches from the eye. In some persons, it 
is much nearer, and in others, considerably 
more distant. The extreme, in the former 
case, constitutes myopy, or short-sighted¬ 
ness ; and, in the latter case, presbyopy , or 
long-sightedness. 

16. Myopy is chiefly caused by too great 
a convexity of the cornea and the crystal¬ 
line lens, which causes the rays to con¬ 
verge to a focus before they reach the 
retina. Objects are therefore indistinctly 
seen by myoptic persons, unless held very 
near the eye to throw the focus farther 
back. This defect may be palliated by the 
use of concave glasses, which render the 
rays, proceeding from objects, more diver¬ 
gent. 

17. Presbyopy is principally caused by 
too little convexity of the cornea and crys¬ 
talline lens, which throws the focal point 
of rays reflected from near objects, beyond 
the retina. This defect is experienced by 
most people, to a greater or less degree, 
after they have advanced beyond the forti¬ 
eth year, and occasionally even by youth. 
A remedy, or, at least, a palliation, is found 
in the use of convex glasses, which render 
the rays more convergent, and enable the 
eye to refract them to a focus farther for¬ 
ward, at the proper point. 

18. The opticians have their spectacles 
numbered to suit different periods of life; 
but, as the short-sighted and long-sighted 
conditions exist in a thousand different de¬ 
grees, each person should select for him¬ 
self such as will enable him to read with¬ 
out effort at the usual distance. 

19. The great obstacle to viewing small 
objects at the usual distance, arises from 
too great a divergence of the light reflect 






THE OPTICIAN. 


249 


ed from them, which causes the rays to 
reach the retina before they have con¬ 
verged to a focus. This defect is remedied 
by convex lenses, which bring the visual 
point nearer to the eye, and consequently 
cause the rays to concentrate in a large 
focus upon the retina. The most powerful 
microscopic lenses are small globules of 
glass, which permit the eye to be brought 
very near to the object. 

20. Microscopes are either single or 
double. In the former case, but one lens 
is used, and through this the object is 
viewed directly; but, in the latter case, 
two or more glasses are employed, through 
one of which a magnified image is thrown 
upon a reflecting surface, and this is view¬ 
ed through the other glass, or glasses, as 
the real object is seen through a single 
microscope. 

21. The solar microscope , on account 
of its great magnifying powers, is the most 
wonderful instrument of this kind. The 
principles of its construction are the same 
with those of the camera obscura. The 
difference consists chiefly in the minor 
circumstance of placing the object very 
near the lens, by which a magnified image 
is thrown at the focal point within the 
room. 

22. In the case of the camera obscura, 
the objects are at a far greater distance 
from the glass on the outside, than the 
images, at the focal point, on the inside. 
The comparatively great distance of the 
object, in this case, causes the image to 
be proportionably smaller. In the solar 
microscope, a small mirror is used to re¬ 
ceive the rays, and to reflect them directly 
upon the object. 

23. The magic lantern is an instrument 
used for magnifying paintings on glass, 
and for throwing their images upon a 
white surface in a darkened room. Its 

32 


general construction is the same with that 
of the solar microscope; but in the appli¬ 
cation, the light of a lamp is employed in¬ 
stead of that from the sun. 

24. Telescopes are employed for view¬ 
ing objects which from their distances ap¬ 
pear small, or are invisible to the naked 
eye. They are of two kinds- - refracting 
and reflecting. The former kind is a com¬ 
pound of the camera obscura and the sin¬ 
gle microscope. It consists of a tube, 
having at the further end a double convex 
lens, which concentrates the rays at a focal 
point within, where the image is viewed 
through a microscopic lens, placed at the 
other end. 

25. In the construction of reflecting 
telescopes, concave mirrors or specula are 
combined with a double convex lens. A 
large mirror of this kind is so placed in the 
tube that it receives the rays of light from 
objects, and reflects them upon another of 
a smaller size. From this they are thrown 
to a focal point, where the image is viewed 
through a double convex lens. The specula 
are made of speculum metal, which is a 
composition of certain proportions of cop¬ 
per and tin. 

26. Many optical appearances are of so 
frequent recurrence that they could not 
have escaped the earliest observers; never¬ 
theless, ages appear to have elapsed before 
any progress was made towards an expla¬ 
nation of them. Empedocles, a Greek phi¬ 
losopher, born at Agrigentum in Sicily, 
460 years before Christ, is the first person 
on record who attempted to write system¬ 
atically on light. 

27. The subject was successively treat¬ 
ed by several other philosophers; but the 
ancients never attained to a high degree 
of information upon it. We have reason 
to believe, however, that convex lenses 
were, in some cases, used as magnifiers, 








250 


THE OPTICIAN. 


and as burning-glasses; although the theo¬ 
ry of their refractive power was not under¬ 
stood. 

28. The magnifying power of glasses, 
and some other optical phenomena, were 
largely treated by Alhazen, an Arabian 
philosopher, who flourished about the year 
1100 of our era: and, in 1270, Vitellio, a 
Polander, published a treatise on optics, 
containing all that was valuable in Alha- 
zen’s work, digested in a better manner, 
and with more lucid explanations of various 
phenomena. 

29. Roger Bacon, an English monk, who 
was born in 1214, and who lived to the 
age of seventy-eight, described very accu¬ 
rately the effects of convex and concave 
lenses, and demonstrated by actual experi¬ 
ment, that a small segment of a glass 
globe would greatly assist the sight of old 
persons. Concerning the actual inventor 
of spectacles, however, we have no certain 
information; we only know, that these 
useful instruments were generally known 
in Europe about the beginning of the four¬ 
teenth century. 

30. In the year 1575, Maurolicus, a 
teacher of mathematics at Messina, pub¬ 
lished a treatise on optics, in which he de¬ 
monstrated that the crystalline humour of 
the eye is a lens, which collects the rays 
of light from external objects, and throws 
them upon the retina. Having arrived 
at a % knowledge of these facts, he was 
enabled to assign the reasons why some 
people were short-sighted, and others long¬ 
sighted. 

31. John Baptista Porta, of Naples, was 
contemporary with Maurolicus. He invent¬ 
ed the camera obscura, and his experiments 
with this instrument convinced him that 
light was a substance, and that its recep¬ 
tion into the eye produced vision. These 
discoveries corresponded very nearly with 


those by Maurolicus, although neither of 
these philosophers had any knowledge of 
what the other had done. The importance 
of Porta’s discoveries will be evident, when 
it is observed, that, before his time, vision 
was supposed to be dependent on what 
were termed visual rays, proceeding from 
the eye. 

32. The telescope was invented towards 
the latter end of the sixteenth century. 
Of this, as of many other valuable inven¬ 
tions, accident furnished the first hint. It 
is said that the children of Zacharias Jan¬ 
sen, a spectacle-maker of Middleburg, in 
Holland, while playing with spectacle- 
glasses in their father’s shop, perceived 
that, when the glasses were held at a cer¬ 
tain distance from each other, the dial of 
the clock appeared greatly magnified, but 
in an inverted position. 

33. This incident suggested to their fa¬ 
ther the idea of adjusting two of these 
glasses on a board, so as to move them at 
pleasure. Two such glasses inclosed in a 
tube completed the invention of the sim¬ 
plest kind of the refracting telescope. 
Galileo greatly improved the telescope, 
and constructed one that magnified thirty- 
three times, and with this he made the as¬ 
tronomical discoveries which have immor¬ 
talized his name. 

34. John Kepler, a great mathematician 
and astronomer, who was born at Weir, 
in Wurtemburg, in the year 1571, paid 
great attention to the phenomena of light 
and vision. He was the first who demon¬ 
strated that the degree of refraction suf¬ 
fered by light in passing through lenses, 
corresponds with the diameter of the cir¬ 
cle of which the concavity or convexity is 
the portion of an arch. He very success¬ 
fully pursued the discoveries of Maurolicus 
and Porta, and asserted, that the images of 
external objects were formed upon the 










THE OPTICIAN. 


251 


optic nerve by the concentration of rays 
which proceed from them. 

35. In 1625, the curious discovery of 
Scheiner was published at Rome, which 
placed beyond doubt the fact, that vision 
depends upon the formation of the image 
of objects upon the retina. The fact was 
demonstrated by cutting away, at the back 
part, the two outside coats of the eye of 
an animal, and by presenting different 
objects before it: the images were dis¬ 
tinctly seen painted on the naked retina. 

36. Near the middle of the seventeenth 
century, the velocity of light was disco¬ 
vered by Roemer; and, in 1663, James 
Gregory, a celebrated Scotch mathemati¬ 
cian, published the first proposal for a re¬ 
flecting telescope. But as he possessed 
no mechanical dexterity himself, and as he 
could find no workman capable of executing 
his designs, he never succeeded in carry¬ 
ing his conceptions into effect. This was 
reserved for Sir Isaac Newton; who, being 
remarkable for manual skill, executed two 
instruments of this kind, in the year 1672, 
on a plan, however, somewhat different 
from that proposed by Gregory. 

37. In the course of the year 1666, the 
attention of Sir Isaac Newton was drawn 


to the phenomena of the refraction of light 
through the prism ; and having observed a 
certain surprising fact, he instituted a va¬ 
riety of experiments, by which he was 
brought to the conclusion, that light was 
not a homogeneous substance; but that it 
is composed of particles, which are capa¬ 
ble of different degrees of refrangibility. 

38. By the same experiments, he also 
proved, that the rays or particles of light 
differ from each other in exhibiting dif¬ 
ferent colours; some producing the colour 
red, others that of yellow, blue, &c. He 
applied his principles to the explanation of 
most of the phenomena of nature, where 
light and colour are concerned; and almost 
every thing which we know upon these 
subjects was laid open by his experi¬ 
ments. 

39. The splendour of Sir Isaac Newton’s 
discoveries obscures, in some measure, the 
merits of earlier and subsequent philoso¬ 
phers; yet several interesting discoveries 
in regard to light and colour, as well as 
many important improvements of optical 
instruments, have been made since his 
time; although the light by which these 
have been achieved has been derived prin 
cipally from his labours. 








THE GOLDBEATER, AND THE JEWELLER. 


GOLD. 

1. The metals most extensively employ¬ 

ed in the arts are gold, silver, copper, lead, 
tin, and iron. These are sometimes found 
uncombined with any other substance, or 
combined only with each other: in either 
of these cases, they are said to be in a na¬ 
tive state. But they are more frequently 
found united with some substances which, 
in a great measure, disguise their metallic 
qualities; or, in other words, in a state of 
ore. The mode of separating the metals 
from their ores, will be noticed in con¬ 
nexion with some of the trades in which 
they are prepared for, or practically ap¬ 
plied in, the arts. H 

2. Gold is a metal of a yellow colour,— 
a characteristic by which it is distinguish¬ 
ed from all other simple metallic bodies. ;j 


As a representative of property, it has been 
used from time immemorial ; and, before 
coinage was invented, it passed for money 
in its native state. In this form, gold is 
still current in some parts of Africa; and 
even in the Southern States of our own 
country, in the vicinity of the gold mines, 
the same practice prevails in a measure. 

3. Gold is rarely employed in a state of 
perfect purity, but is generally used in 
combination with some other metal, which 
renders it harder, and consequently more 
capable of enduring the friction to which 
it is exposed. The metal used for this 
purpose is called an alloy , and generally 
consists of silver or copper. 

4. For convenience in commerce, this 
precious metal is supposed to be divided 
into twenty-four equal parts, called carat a 















































































GOLD. 


253 


If perfectly pure, it is denominated gold 
24 carats fine; if alloyed with one part 
of any other metal or mixture of metals, 
it is said to be 23 carats fine. The stand¬ 
ard gold coin of the United States and 
Great Britain is 22 carats fine ; or, in other 
words, it contains one-twelfth part of alloy. 
Gold, made standard by equal parts of cop¬ 
per and silver, approaches in colour more 
nearly to pure gold than when alloyed in 
any other manner. 

5. Gold is found in veins in mountains, 
most usually associated with ores of silver, 
sulphurets of iron, copper, lead, and other 
metals, li is often so minutely distributed, 
that its presence is detected only by pound¬ 
ing and washing the ores in which it exists. 
But the greatest part of the gold in the 
possession of mankind, has been found in 
the form of grains and small detached 
masses, amid the sands of rivers and in 
alluvial lands, where it had been deposit¬ 
ed by means of water, which had detached 
it from its original position in the moun¬ 
tains. 

6. To separate or extract gold from the 
foreign matters with which it may be com¬ 
bined, the whole is first pounded fine, and 
then washed by putting it in a stream of 
water, which carries off the stony parti¬ 
cles, while the gold, by its specific gravi¬ 
ty, sinks to the bottom. To render the 
separation still more perfect, this sediment 
is mixed with ten times its weight of 
quicksilver, and put into a leather bag, in 
which it is submitted to a pressure that 
forces the fluid part through its pores; 
while the more solid part of the amalgam, 
which contains most of the gold, remains. 

7. To separate the quicksilver from the 
gold, the mass is subjected to the process 
of sublimation in earthen retorts, which, 
as applied to metals, is similar in its effects 
to distillation, as applied to liquids. When 


gold is contained in the ores of other me¬ 
tals, they are roasted, in order to drive oft* 
the volatile parts, and to oxidize the other 
metals. The gold is then extracted by 
amalgamation, by liquefaction with lead, 
by the aid of nitric acid, or by other me¬ 
thods adapted to the nature of the ore. 

8. Gold obtained in any of these me¬ 
thods is always more or less alloyed with 
some other metal, especially with silver or 
copper; but a separation is produced, so 
far as it is required for the purposes of 
commerce, by two processes, one of which 
is called cupellation, and the other part¬ 
ing. The former of these operations con¬ 
sists in melting the gold with a quantity 
of lead, which readily oxidizes and vitri¬ 
fies, and which causes the same changes 
to take place in the metal to be detached 
from the mass of gold. The operation is 
called cupellation, because it is usually 
performed on a cupel, a vessel formed of 
bone-ashes, or sometimes of wood-ashes. 

9. Cupellation is effectual in removing 
copper, but not so with regard to silver: 
the latter is separated by means of a pro¬ 
cess called parting. The metal is rolled 
out into thin sheets or strips, and cut into 
small pieces. These are put into diluted 
nitric acid, which, by the aid of a moderate 
heat, dissolves the silver, leaving the gold 
in a porous state. 

10. Another process, called cementation , 
is also sometimes used. It is performed 
by beating the alloyed metal into thin 
plates, and arranging them in alternate 
layers with a cement containing nitrate 
of potash and sulphate of iron. The whole 
is then exposed to heat, until a great part 
of the baser metals has been removed by 
the action of the nitric acid liberated by 
the nitre. Cementation is often employ¬ 
ed by goldsmiths to refine the surface of 
articles in which the gold has been com- 

W 













254 


THE GOLD-BEATER. 


bined, in too small a proportion, with me¬ 
tals of less value. 

11. The average amount of gold annu¬ 
ally obtained in every part of the globe 
cannot fall far short of twenty-five millions 
of dollars in value: of which South Ame¬ 
rica supplies about one half, and Europe 
about one twenty-fifth part. The amount 
yielded by the Southern States of our Union 
cannot be accurately ascertained, but the 
whole sum coined at the United States’ 
Mint in 1834, from gold obtained in this 
quarter, amounted to $898,000, and since 
1824, to $3,679,000. In 1824, the sum 
was but $5,000. Our Southern mines will 
probably continue to increase in produc¬ 
tiveness. 


THE GOLD BEATER. 

1. Gold, not being subject to intrinsic 
change by atmospheric action, or by that 
of common chemical agents, is extensive¬ 
ly used in gilding various substances, either 
with the view of preserving them from de¬ 
cay, or for the purpose of embellishment. 
To prepare the gold for application in this 
manner is the business of the gold-beater. 

2. The metal is first melted with some 
borax in a crucible, and formed into an in¬ 
got by pouring it into an iron mould. The 
mass is next hammered a little on an an¬ 
vil, to increase the cohesion of its parts, 
and afterwards repeatedly passed between 
steel rollers, until it has become a riband 
as thin as paper. 

3. Two ounces and a half of this riband 
are cut into 150 pieces of equal dimensions. 
These are hammered a little to make them 
smooth, and then interlaid with pieces of 
fine vellum four inches square. The 
whole, with twenty other pieces of vellum 
on each side, is inclosed in two cases of 
aarchment The packet is then beaten on 


a marble anvil with a hammer weighing 
sixteen pounds, until the gold has been 
spread to near the size of the vellum 
leaves; it, in the mean time, being often 
turned over. 

4. The gold leaves are next divided into 
four equal squares, with a steel knife on a 
leather cushion; and the 600 leaves thus 
produced are interlaid with a kind of lea¬ 
ther or parchment made of the intestines 

, of the ox, and beaten with a hammer 
weighing twelve pounds, until the leaves 
have been extended as before. They are 
again quartered and interlaid, and beaten 
with a hammer weighing six or eight 
pounds. 

5. The gold having now been sufficient¬ 
ly extended, the packets are taken apart, 
and the leaves cut to a proper and uniform 
size, by means of a cane frame on a leather 
cushion. The leaves, as fast as they are 
trimmed, are placed in a book, the paper 
of which has been covered with red bole, 
to prevent the gold from sticking. Of the 
two ounces and a half of gold thus treated, 
only about one ounce remains in perfect 
leaves; which, altogether, amount to 2,000 
three inches and three-eighths square. 
The books contain twenty-five leaves, so 
that one ounce of gold makes eighty books. 

6. Gold extended into leaves is allov- 
ed, in a greater or less degree, with sil¬ 
ver or copper, or both; because, in a pure 
state, it would be too ductile. The newest 
skins will work the purest gold, and make 
the thinnest leaf, because they are the 
smoothest. The alloy varies from three 
to twenty-four grains to the ounce, but in 
general it is six, or one part of alloy to 
eighty of gold. 

7. A kind of leaf called party gold is 
formed by the union of a thin leaf of gold 
and a thicker one of silver. The two are 
laid together, and afterwards heated and 










THE JEWELLER. 


255 


pressed, until they have cohered. They 
are then beaten and otherwise treated, as 
in the process just described. Silver, and 
likewise copper, are also beaten into leaves, 
although they will by no means bear so 
great a reduction as gold. Considerable 
quantities of copper leaf are brought from 
Holland, which in commerce is known 
by the denomination of “ Dutch leaf,” or 
“ Dutch gold.” 

8. The ancient Romans were not igno¬ 
rant of the process of gold-beating, although 
they did not carry it so far as we do. Pliny 
informs us that they sometimes made 750 
leaves four fingers square, from an ounce 
of gold. At Praeneste was a statue of For¬ 
tune, gilt with leaves of a certain thickness; 
hence those beaten to the same degree of 
thickness were called Prcenestines. Those 
of another and less degree of thickness, 
were called qacestoriales, for a similar 
reason. 

9. The Romans began to gild the inte¬ 
rior of their houses immediately after the 
destruction of Carthage. The wainscots 
of the Capitol were first ornamented in this 
manner; and afterwards it became fashion¬ 
able to gild the walls and ceilings of pri¬ 
vate dwellings, as well as articles of fur- 
ni ure. 

10. Gold wire. The ductility of gold 
is more conspicuous in wire than in leaves. 
The wire thus denominated is in reality 
silver wire covered with gold. It is formed 
by covering a silver rod with thick leaves 
of gold, and then drawing it successively 
through conical holes of different sizes, 
made in plates of steel. The wire may 
be reduced, in this manner, to a degree 
of extreme fineness, the gold being drawn 
out with the silver, and constituting for it 
a perfect coating. 

11 . Wire thus formed is often used in 
the manufacture of gold thread. Before 


it is applied in this way, it is flattened 
between rollers of polished steel, and then 
wound on yellow silk by machinery. The 
coating of gold on the silver wire employed 
in this way, does not exceed the millionth 
part of an inch in thickness. 


THE JEWELLER. 

1. The jeweller makes rings, lockets, 
bracelets, brooches, ear-rings, necklaces, 
watch-chains, and trinkets of like nature. 
The materials of the best quality of these 
ornaments are gold, pearls, and precious 
stones, although those of an inferior kind 
are often used. 

2. There are several stones to which is 
applied the epithet precious , of which the 
following are the principal—the diamond, 
the ruby, the sapphire, the topaz, the chry- 
solyte, the beryl, the emerald, the hya¬ 
cinth, the amethyst, the garnet, the tour¬ 
malin, and the opal. To these may be 
added rock crystal, the fine flints of peb¬ 
bles, the cat’s-eye, the oculus mundi or 
hydrophanes, the chalcedony, the moon¬ 
stone, the onyx, the cornelian, the sar¬ 
donyx, agates, and the Labrador-stone. 
These stones, together with different kinds 
of pearl, are also called gems or jewels. 

3. The precious stones are valuable, as 
articles of merchandise, in proportion to 
their scarcity, weight, transparency, lus¬ 
tre, and hardness. In most of these par¬ 
ticulars, the diamond is superior to any 
other; but those of the same size are not 
always of equal value, for all are not of 
the same colour or brilliancy. The very 
best are said to be diamonds of the first 
water. The diamond was called adamant 
by the ancients, although this term was 
not confined exclusively to this stone. 

4. The weight and consequent value 
of the most precious stones are estimated 













5256 


THE JEWELLER. 


in carats , one of which is equal to four 
grains troy weight, and the value of each 
carat is increased in proportion to the size 
of the stone. In England the cost of a 
cut diamond of the first water is thus esti¬ 
mated :— 

1 carat is = £ 8 

2 do. is 2X2X8 = 32 

3 do. is 3X3X8= 72 

4 do. is 4X4X8= 128 

By the foregoing examples, it will be seen 
that the weight is multiplied by itself, and 
the product by the price per carat, which 
may be some other sum, according to the 
general characteristics of the stone. 

5. This rule, however, is not extended 
to diamonds of more than 20 carats in 
weight; nor is this or any other rule of 
estimate strictly adhered to in every case; 
nevertheless, it probably comes pretty near 
to general usage. In the same country, a 
perfect ruby of 3^ carats is worth more 
than a diamond of equal weight A ruby 
weighing one carat may be worth 10 
guineas; two carats, 40 guineas; three 
carats, 150 guineas; six carats, 1000 gui¬ 
neas. A ruby of a deep red colour, ex¬ 
ceeding 20 carats, is called a carbuncle; 
and of these, 108, weighing from 100 to 
200 carats each, are said to be in the 
throne of the Great Mogul. 

6. Some of the European sovereigns 
have in their possession diamonds of great 
value, several of which were originally 
brought to England from India. The 
Pitt or Regent diamond was purchased 
in India by Robert Pitt, grandfather of 
the Right Honourable William Pitt, for 
£12,500 sterling. It was brought to Eng¬ 
land in a rough state, and £5000 were 
there expended in cutting it; but the cut¬ 
tings themselves were worth £7000 or 
£8000. It was sold to the duke of Or¬ 
leans, for the king of France, at the enor¬ 


mous price of £136,000. Its weight is 
136 carats; and, before it was cut, it was 
as large as a common pullet’s egg. 

7. A celebrated diamond, in the posses¬ 
sion of the emperor of Russia, is denomi¬ 
nated the Effingham or Russian diamond. 

It was brought to England by the earl of 
Effingham, while governor-general of In¬ 
dia, and sold to the empress Catharine for 
£90,000. It is inferior in shape to the last 
mentioned, but superior to it in magnitude, 
it weighing 198 carats. The king of Eng¬ 
land has a diamond which cost £22,000. 

8. The largest diamond hitherto known 
was found in the island of Borneo, and it is 
now in the possession of the rajah of Mat- , 
tan. Many years ago, the governor of Ba¬ 
tavia offered in exchange for it $150,000, 
and two large brigs of war with their 
equipments and outfit; but the rajah re¬ 
fused to part with the jewel, to which the 
Malays supposed miraculous pow ? er be¬ 
longed, and which they believed to be 
connected with the fate of his family. 
The weight of this diamond is 367 carats. 

9. Other jew T els, belonging to different 
sovereigns, as well as to private persons, 
might be mentioned; but a sufficient num¬ 
ber has been noticed to enable the reader 
to form some idea of the extravagant ex- 
penditures often made for articles of ima¬ 
ginary value. We will merely add that 
the royal family of Portugal is in posses¬ 
sion of a stone which was formerly sup¬ 
posed to be a diamond, but which has 
lately been proved to be some kind of 
crystal of little value. The weight of 
this stone is 1680 carats; and, until its 
real character w r as discovered, it was va¬ 
lued at 224 millions sterling. 

10. The value of precious stones was 
much increased in ancient times, by the 
absurd notion commonly entertained, that 
they possessed miraculous powers in pre- 











THE JEWELLER 


venting or curing diseases, as well as in 
keeping off witches and evil spirits. These 
nolions still prevail more or less in hea¬ 
then nations; and many, even in countries 
called Christian, wear them, or something 
else, as amulets for the same or similar 
purposes 

11. The Gem-sculptor. Figures and let¬ 
ters are often cut in precious stones by 
the gem-engraver or gem-sculptor, whose 
art, according to the opinion cf some wri¬ 
ters, originated with the Babylonians; but, 
according to others, it had its commence¬ 
ment in India or Egypt. In the latter 
country, it was first employed in the pro¬ 
duction of hieroglyphical figures on basalt 
and granite rocks. This art, which is de¬ 
nominated lithoglyptics, or the glyptic 
art, was held in great estimation by the 
Greeks in ancient times. It arose to emi¬ 
nence with the other fine arts; and like 
them it had its zenith of perfection, was 
buried with them in the ruins of the 
Roman empire, and with them revived 
towards the end of the fifteenth century. 

12. The productions of gem-sculpture 
are chiefly of two kinds. The first of 
these are cameos , which are little bas- 
reliefs or figures raised above the surface. 
They are commonly made of stones, the 
strata of which are of different colours, so 
that the figure is different in colour from 
/he ground on which it has been raised. 
The other productions of this art are de¬ 
nominated intaglios. The work of these 
is the reverse of that first mentioned, since 
the figure is cut below the surface of the 
stone, so that they serve as seals to pro¬ 
duce impressions in relief upon soft sub¬ 
stances. 

13. This artist performs his work by j 
means of a lathe, with the aid of diamond 
dust. The instruments are made of soft 
iron, and are fixed in leaden chucks, which j 

33 


2i i 


can be readily fastened to one end of the 
mandrel. The diamond dust is made into 
thin paste with olive oil, and is applied to 
the point of the instrument. The small 
invisible particles insinuate themselves into 
the iron, where they remain permanently 
fixed. In producing figures and letters 
with a tool thus charged with the hardest 
substance in nature, the precious stone is 
brought in contact with it while in rapid 
motion. 

14. The engraved gems of antiquity 
have been greatly esteemed, as works of 
art, by the curious, and various methods 
have, therefore, been devised to imitate 
them. This has been done in glass in such 
perfection, both as to form and colour, that 
good judges can scarcely distinguish the 
imitations from the originals. The im 
pression of the gem is first taken in some 
kind of fine earth; and, upon the mould 
thus formed, the proposed material is 
pressed, while in a plastic state. 

15. The precious stones generally have 
likewise been imitated with great success. 
The basis of the different compositions is 
a paste made of the finest flint glass, the 
materials of which have been selected and 
combined with great care. The desired 
colour is produced with metallic oxydes. 
A great number of complex receipts are 
in use among manufacturers of these arti¬ 
cles. 

16. The Lapidary. The precious stones 
and imitations of them in glass are brought 
to the desired form by the lapidary. The 
instrument with which ..his artist cmefly 
operates is a wheel which is made to re¬ 
volve horizontally before him. It is put 
in motion by means of an endless rope 
extending from another wheel, which is 
moved with the left hand of the operator, 
while, with his right, he holds in a proper 
position the substance to be reduced. 

W2 






258 


THE JEWELLER. 


17. The precious stones, being of small 
size, cannot be held with steadiness on the 
wheel with the hand, nor with any holding 
instrument: they are, therefore, first fas¬ 
tened, by means of sealing-wax, to the end 
of small sticks. By this simple means, and 
a small upright post, against which the 
hand or the other end of the stick is rest¬ 
ed, the workman can hold a stone in any 
position he may desire. 

18. The lapidary’s wheel is made of 
different kinds of metals. The diamond is 
cut on a wheel of soft steel, by the aid of 
its own dust mixed with olive-oil. The 
oriental ruby, sapphire, and topaz, are cut 
on a copper wheel in the same manner, 
and polished with tripoli and water. Stones 
of a less degree of hardness are cut and 
polished on a leaden or tin wheel with 
emory and rotten stone. 

19. The ancients were not acquainted 
with any method of cutting the diamond, 
although they applied its powder to polish¬ 
ing, cutting, and engraving other stones. 
Gems of this kind, either rough, or polished 
by nature, were set as ornaments, and 
were valued according to the beauty and 
perfection oftheircrystallization and trans¬ 
parency. The value of any precious stone 
or jewel depends much upon the skill of 
the lapidary. 

20. The Pearl-fisherman .—Pearls are 
obtained from a testaceous fish of the oys¬ 
ter kind, found in the waters of the East 
and West Indies, as well as in other seas 
of different latitudes. These oysters grow 
in some parts of the globe, in clusters, on 
rocks in the depths of the sea. Such 
places are called pearl-banks, of which 
the most celebrated are near the islands of 
Ceylon and Japan, and in the Persian Gulf. 
The finest and most costly pearls are the 
oriental. 

21. Pearls are considered bysome to be 


morbid concretions or calculi, produced 
by the endeavour of the animal to fill up 
the holes which may have been made from 
without by small worms. Others suppose 
them to be mere concretions of the animal 
juice about some extraneous matter which 
may have been intruded by some means 
into the shell. 

22. To collect the shells containing these 
singular productions, is the business of 
divers, who have been brought up to this 
dangerous occupation. They must gene¬ 
rally descend from eight to twelve fathoms, 
and must remain beneath the surface of the 
water for several minutes, during which 
time they are exposed to the attacks of 
the voracious shark. In addition to the 
danger from this cause, the employment 
is very destructive of health, 

23. In preparing a diver for his descent, 
a rope is tied round the body, and a stone 
weighing twenty or thirty pounds is fast¬ 
ened to the foot to sink him. His ears and 
nostrils are filled with cotton, and a sponge 
dipped in oil is fastened to his arm, to 
which he may now and then apply his 
mouth, in order to breathe without inhaling 
water. In addition to these equipments, 
he is furnished with a knife, with which 
the shells may be detached from the rocks, 
and with a net or basket, in which they 
may be deposited. 

24. Thus equipped, he descends to the 
bottom, and having filled his depository, or 
having stayed below as long as he may be 
able, he unlooses the stone, gives the sig¬ 
nal to his companions above, who quickly 
draw him into the boat. At some pearl- 
fisheries, the diving-bell is employed, which 
in some degree obviates some of the dan 
gers before stated. 

25. The shells thus obtained are laid by, 
until the body of the animal has put.rified, 
when they commonly open of themselves. 








THE JEWELLER. 


259 


Those which contain any pearls generally 
have from eight to twelve. The pearls 
having been dried, are assorted according 
to their various magnitudes; and, to effect 
this separation, they are passed through 
nine sieves of different degrees of fine¬ 
ness. The largest pearls are about the 
size of a small walnut; but such are very 
rare. The smallest are called seed pearls. 

26. Pearls are of various colours, such 
as white, yellow, lead-colour, blackish, and 
totally black. The “ white water” is pre¬ 
ferred in Europe, and the “yellow water,” 
in Arabia and India. In regard to their 
form, they vary considerably; being round, 
pear-formed, onion-formed, and irregular. 
The inner part of the pearl muscle is called 
nacre or mother of pearl , and this is man¬ 
ufactured into beads, snuff-boxes, spoons, 
and a variety of other articles.. 

27. Pearls were objects of luxury among 
the ancients. A pearl valued by Pliny at 
a certain sum, which, reduced to our cur¬ 
rency, amounts to $375,000, was dissolved 
by Cleopatra, and drunk to the health of 
Antony, at a banquet. These beautiful 
productions are not estimated so highly 
at present. The largest will sometimes 
command four or five hundred dollars, 
although very few, which are worth over 
forty or fifty dollars, are ever brought to 

, this country. 

28. The gem-engraver and the jeweller 
were both employed by Moses, in preparing 
the ornaments in the ephod and breast¬ 
plate of the high-priest. In the former 
vv£re set onyx stones, and in the latter, 
twelve different stones. On the gems of 
both ornaments, were engraved the names 
of the twelve tribes of Israel. 

39. We, however, have evidence of the 


practice of the arts, connected with the 
production of jewelry, long before the davs 
of the Jewish lawgiver. We learn from 
the twenty-fourth chapter of Genesis, that 
the servant of Abraham presented a golden 
ear-ring and bracelets for the hands, to 
Rebekah, who afterwards became the wife 
of Isaac. Perhaps these were brought, 
from Egypt by the patriarch about seventy 
years before. 

30. Men have ever been fond of per¬ 
sonal ornaments, and there have been but 
few nations since the flood, which have not 
encouraged the jeweller in some way or 
other. In modern times, the art has been 
greatly improved. The French, for light¬ 
ness and elegance of design, have sur¬ 
passed other nations; but the English, for 
excellence of workmanship, have been 
considered, for ages, unrivalled. 

31. In the United States, the manufac¬ 
ture of jewelry is very extensive, there 
being large establishments for this purpose 
in Philadelphia, and in Newark, N. J., as 
well as in several other places. So exten¬ 
sive have been the operations in this branch 
of business, and to such advantage have 
they been carried on, that importations 
from other countries have ceased, and this 
too, without the influence of custom-house 
duties. 

32. The capital necessary in carrying 
on the business of the jeweller is con¬ 
siderable, inasmuch as the materials are 
very expensive. The operations likewise 
require the exercise of much ingenuity. 
These, however, we shall not attempt to 
describe, since our article on this subject 
has already been extended beyond its pro¬ 
per limits, and since, also, they could be 
hardly understood without actual inspection. 






THE SILVERSMITH, AND THE WATCH-MAKER. 


SILVER. | 

1. Silver is a metal of a fine white col- 
our, and, in brilliancy, inferior to none of 
the metals except steel. In malleability, 
it is next to gold, it being capable of re¬ 
duction into leaves not more than the 
TffnV(T?r °f an inch in thickness, and of 
being drawn into wire much finer than a 
human hair. 

2. The relative value of silver and gold 
has varied considerably in different ages. 
In the prosperous period of ancient civili¬ 
zation, one pound of gold was worth twelve 
of silver. In Great Britain, the relative 
value of the two metals is one to fifteen 
and one-fifth; and, on the continent of 
Europe, it is about one to fifteen. In the 
United States, the relative value of these 
two metals has been recently established 


by Congress at one to sixteen. In China 
and Japan, it is said to be one to nine or 
ten. 

3. There are two methods of separating 
silver from its various ores, and these are 
called smelting and amalgamation. In the 
former method, the ore and a due propor¬ 
tion of lead are heated together; and the 
latter, from its great affinity for silver, 
unites with it, and separates it from other 
substances. The two metals are after¬ 
wards separated from each other, by melt¬ 
ing them on a cupel, and then exposing 
them to a current of atmospheric air, by 
which the lead is converted into an oxvde 
while the silver remains untouched. This 
process is called cupellation. 

4. In the other method, the first thing t 
done is to roast the ore, to expel the sul- 




































































THE SILVERSMITH. 


261 


phur and other volatile parts. It is then 
reduced to an impalpable powder, by ma¬ 
chinery ; and having been sifted, it is agi¬ 
tated sixteen or eighteen hours in barrels, 
with a quantity of quicksilver, water, and 
iron, combined in certain proportions. This 
agitation causes the several substances 
composing the charge , to unite according 
to their respective affinities. 

5. The silver and mercury combine, 
forming an amalgam, which, having been 
put into a leather sack, a part of the latter 
is separated from the rest by filtration, 
still leaving six parts of this metal to one 
of the silver. The amalgam is next sub¬ 
mitted to the action of heat in a distilling 
furnace, by which the mercury is subli¬ 
mated. 

6. The value of the silver annually 
taken from the mines in all parts of the 
world, is supposed to be about -$20,000,000, 
of which Mexico and South America yield 
the greater part. The several silver mines 
of Europe and Asia produce about two 
millions and a half. 


THE SILVERSMITH. 

1. The artisan who forms certain arti¬ 
cles of gold and silver is called indiffer¬ 
ently a goldsmith or a silversmith. The 
former denomination is most commonly 
employed in England, and the latter in the 
United States. 

2. The most common subjects of manu¬ 
facture by the silversmith are, cups, gob¬ 
lets, chalices, tankards, spoons, knives, 
forks, waiters, bread-trays, tea-pots, coffee¬ 
pots, cream-pots, sugar-bowls, sugar-tongs, 
and pencil-cases. Many of these articles 
he sometimes makes of gold: this is espe¬ 
cially the case in Europe, and some parts 
af Asia. In the United States, the people 


are commonly satisfied with the less ex¬ 
pensive metal. 

3. A great proportion of the silver used 
by this mechanic has been previously 
coined into dollars. In working these into 
different utensils or vessels, he first melts 
them in a crucible, and casts the silver 
into solid masses by pouring it into iron 
moulds; and having forged it on an anvil, 
he reduces it still further, and to a uniform 
thickness, by passing it several times be¬ 
tween steel rollers. In giving additional 
explanations of the operations of the sil¬ 
versmith, we will describe the manner in 
which a plain tea-pot is manufactured. 

4. In forming the bod}', or containing 
part, the plate, forged and rolled as just 
described, is cut into a circular form, and 
placed on a block of soft wood with a 
concave face, where it is beaten with a 
convex hammer until it has been brought 
to a form much like that of a saucer. It 
is then placed upon an anvil, and beaten 
a while with a long-necked hammer with a 
round flattish face. 

5. It is next raised to the proposed form 
by forging it on a long slender anvil, called 
a stake , with a narrow-faced hammer, 
which spreads the metal perpendicularly 
from the bottom, or laterally, according to 
the position in which it may be held when 
brought in contact with the metal. 

6. After the piece has been thus brought 
to the proposed form, it is planished all 
over by beating it with a small hammer on 
the outside, while it rests on a small steel 
head on the inside. During the perform¬ 
ance of these operations, the silver is occa¬ 
sionally annealed byjieating it in the fire; 
but it is worked while in a cold state, ex¬ 
cept in the first forging, when it is wrought 
while a little below red heat. 

7. The several pieces which compose a 
tea-pot of ordinary construction amount to 











262 


THE SILVERSMITH. 


about fifteen; the greater part of which 
are rolled and forged in the manner just 
described. The knob on the lid, the han¬ 
dle, and the spout, are sometimes cast, and 
it other times, the two pieces of which 
they are formed are cut from a plate, and 
brought to the proper figure by impressing 
them with steel dies. 

8. The figures seen on the cheaper kinds 
of silver tea-pots, as well as on other ves¬ 
sels and utensils, are commonly made by 
passing the plates or strips between en¬ 
graved steel rollers, or by stamping them 
with steel dies. The dies are commonly 
brought in sudden and violent contact with 
the metal by means of an iron drop , which 
is let fall from a height upon it. 

9. After the several parts have been 
brought to the proper shape, and to the 
requisite finish, they are firmly united to¬ 
gether by means of a solder composed of 
about three parts of silver and one of brass 
and copper. Before the spout and handle 
are soldered on, the other parts, which 
have been thus united into one piece, are 
brought to a certain degree of polish. 

10. This is effected chiefly in a lathe, 
by holding against the piece, while in 
rapid motion, first a file, then a scraper, 
and afterwards pumice stone and Scotch 
stone. It is then held against a rapidly 
revolving brush, charged with fine brick- 
dust and sweet oil. The handle and spout 
are next soldered on. After this, the vessel 
is annealed, and put in pickle , or, in other 
words, into a weak solution of oil of vit¬ 
riol. It is then scoured with sand and 
water, and the whole operation is com¬ 
pleted by burnishing 4he smooth parts with 
a steel instrument. 

11. In the more expensive kind of wares, 
the raised figures and the frosty appear¬ 
ance are produced by a process called 
chasing. In executing this kind of work, 


a drawing is first made on the silver w 7 ith 
a lead pencil. The several parts are then 
raised from the other side, corresponding 
as nearly as possible to it. The vessel or 
piece is then filled with, or placed upon 
melted cement, composed of pitch and 
brick-dust, and after the cement has be¬ 
come hard by cooling, the chaser reduces 
the raised parts to the form indicated by 
the drawing, by means of small steel 
punches. The roughness of surface, and 
frosty appearance are produced by punches 
indented on the end. 

12. The operations of the silversmith 
are exceedingly various, many of which 
could be hardly understood from mere de¬ 
scription. We would therefore recom¬ 
mend to the curious, actual inspection, 
assuring them that the ingenuity displayed 
in executing the work in the different 
branches of the business, is well worthy 
of their attention. We will merely add, 
that spoons, knives, and forks, are not cast, 
as is frequently supposed, but forged from 
strips of silver cut from rolled sheets. 

13. The earliest historical notice of gold 
and silver is found in the thirteenth chap¬ 
ter of Genesis, where it is stated that 
Abraham returned to Canaan from Egypt, 
“rich in cattle, in silver, and in gold.” 
This event took place about 1920 years 
before Christ; but little more than 400 
years after the deluge. From the author¬ 
ity of the same book, we also learn, that 
during the life of this patriarch, those 
metals were employed as a medium of 
commercial intercourse, and as the mate¬ 
rials for personal ornaments, vessels, and 
utensils. 

14. From the preceding facts, we have 
reason to believe that gold and silver were 
known to the antediluvians; for, had not 
this been the case, they could hardly have 
been held in such estimation so early as 







THE CLOCK AND WATCH MAKER. 


263 


Die time of Abraham. In short, they 
were probably wrought even in the days 
of the original progenitor of the human 
race, as was evidently the case with iron 
and copper. 


THE CLOCK AND WATCH MAKER. 

1. The great divisions of time, noted by 
uncivilized men, are those which are indi¬ 
cated by the changes of the moon, and the 
annual and diurnal revolutions of the earth: 
but the ingenuity of man was very early 
exercised in devising methods of measur¬ 
ing more minute periods of duration. 

2. The earliest contrivance for effecting 
this object was the sun-dial. This instru¬ 
ment was known to the ancient Egyptians, 
Chaldeans, Chinese, and Bramins. It was 
likewise known to the Hebrews, at least 
as early as 740 years before Christ, in the 
days of Ahaz the king. The Greeks and 
the Romans borrowed it from their east¬ 
ern neighbours. The first sun-dial at Rome 
was set up by Papirius Cursor, about 300 
years before Christ. Before this period, 
the Romans determined the time of day by 
the rude method of observing the length 
of shadows. 

3. The sun-dial, as it is now construct¬ 
ed, consists of a plate, divided into twelve 
equal parts, like the face of a clock, on 
which the falling of a shadow indicates 
the time of day. The shadow is projected 
by the sun, through the intervention of a 
rod or the edge of a plate stile erected on 
the plane of a dial. But since the dial was 
useful.only in the clear day, another in¬ 
strument was invented, which could be 
used at all times, in every variety of situ¬ 
ation ; and to this was given the name of 
clepsydra. 

4. This instrument is supposed to have 
been invented in Egypt; but at what pe¬ 


riod, or by whom, is not stated. Its con¬ 
struction was varied, in different ages and 
countries, according with the particular 
modes of reckoning time; but the constant 
dropping or running of water from one 
vessel into another, through a small aper¬ 
ture, is the basis in all the forms which it 
has assumed. The time was indicated bv 
the regularly increasing height of the wa¬ 
ter in the receiving vessel. 

5. The clepsydra was introduced intc 
Greece by Plato, near 400 years before 
Christ; and, about 200 years after this 
into Rome, by Scipio Africanus. It is said 
that Pompey brought a valuable one from 
the East, and that Julius Caasar met with 
one in England, by which he discovered 
that the summer nights were shorter there 
than in Italy. 

6. The use which Pompey made of his 
instrument was to limit the length of 
speeches in the senate. Hence he is said, 
by a historian of those times, to have 
been the first Roman who put bridles upon 
eloquence. A similar use was made of 
the clepsydra in the courts of justice, first 
in Greece, and afterwards in Rome. 

7. A kind of water-clock, or clepsydra, 
adapted to the modern divisions of time, 
was invented near the middle of the seven¬ 
teenth century; and these were exten¬ 
sively used, in various parts of Europe, for 
a considerable time: but they are now en¬ 
tirely superseded by our common clocks 
and watches, which are far more perfect 
in their operation, and, in all respects, 
better adapted to the purposes to which 
they are applied. 

8. The invention of the clock is con¬ 
cealed in the greatest obscurity. Some 
writers attribute it to the monks, as this 
instrument was used in the twelfth cen¬ 
tury, in the monasteries, to regulate the 
inmates in their attendance on prayers 











264 


THE CLOCK AND WATCH MAKER. 


both by night and by day. Others sup¬ 
pose that a knowledge of this valuable 
instrument was derived from the Sara¬ 
cens, through the intercourse arising from 
the crusades. Be this as it may, clocks 
were but little known in Europe, until the 
beginning of the fourteenth century. 

9. Richard, abbot of St. Alban’s, Eng¬ 
land, made a dock in 1326, such as had 
never been heard of until then. It not 
only indicated the course of the sun and 
moon, but also the ebbing and flowing of 
the tide. Large clocks on steeples began 
to be used in this century. The first of 
this kind is supposed to have been made 
and put up in Padua by Jacobus Dondi. 

10. A steeple clock was set up in Buo- 
logne, in 1356; and, in 1364, Henry de 
YVyck, a German artist, placed one in the 
palace of Charles V., king of France. In 
1368, three Dutchmen introduced clock¬ 
work into England, under the patronage 
of Edward III. Clocks began to be com¬ 
mon both in England and on the continent, 
about the end of the fifteenth century. 

11. The clock of Henry de Wyck is 
the most ancient instrument of this kind 
of which we have a description. The 
wheels were made of wrought iron, and 
the teeth were cut by hand. In other 
respects, also, it was a rude piece of me¬ 
chanism, and not at all capable of keeping 
time with accuracy. But, rude as it was, 
it is not likely that it was the invention 
of a single individual: but that, after the 
first rude machine was put in motion, it 
received several improvements from va¬ 
rious persons. This has, at least, been the 
case with all the improvements made on 
the clock of Henry de Wyck, to the pre¬ 
sent day. 

12. The application of the pendulum 
to clock-work appears to have been first 
made by Vincenzo Galileo, in 1649; but 


the improvement was rendered completely 
successful, in 1656, by Christian Huygens, 
a Dutch philosopher. The laws of the os¬ 
cillation of the pendulum were first inves¬ 
tigated by Galileo, the great Italian phi¬ 
losopher, and father of the Galileo just 
mentioned. His attention was attracted 
to this subject by the swinging of a lamp, 
suspended from the ceiling of the cathe¬ 
dral, at Pisa, his native city. 

13. The clocks first made were of a 
large size, and were placed only in public 
edifices. The works were, at length, re¬ 
duced in their dimensions, and these use¬ 
ful machines were gradually introduced 
into private dwellings. They were finally 
made of a portable size, and were carried 
about the person. These portable clocks 
had, for their maintaining power, a main¬ 
spring of steel, instead of a weight, as in 
the case of the larger time-keepers. 

14. The original pocket-watches differed 
but little, if at all, in the general plan of 
their construction, from the portable clocks 
just mentioned. The transition from one 
kind of* instrument to the other was, there¬ 
fore, obvious and easy; but the time of 
the change cannot be certainly deter¬ 
mined. It is commonly admitted, how¬ 
ever, that Peter Ilele constructed the first 
watch in 1510. 

15. Watches appear to have been ex¬ 
tensively manufactured at Nuremburg, in 
Germany, soon after their invention, as 
one of the names by which they were de¬ 
signated, was Nuremburg eggs. These 
instruments, as well as clocks, were in 
common use in France in 1544, when the 
company of clock and watch makers of 
Paris was first incorporated. 

16. In 1658, the spring balance was 
invented by Doctor Nathaniel Hooke, an 
English philosopher. At least, the inven¬ 
tion is attributed to him by his countrymen 












THE CLOCK AND WATCH MAKER. 


265 


On the continent, it is claimed for Christian 
Huygens. Before this improvement was 
made, the performance of watches was so 
defective, that the best of them could not 
be relied upon for accurate time an hour 
together. They were accordingly con¬ 
structed so as to be wound up twice a day, 
and to be set occasionally. 

17. After the great improvements had 
been effected in the clock and watch by 
Huygens and Hooke, several others of 
minor importance were successively made 
by different persons; but our limits do not 
allow us to give them a particular notice; 
we will only state that the repeating ap¬ 
paratus of both clocks and watches was 
invented, about the year 1676, by one Bar- 
low, an Englishman;—that the compensa¬ 
tion or gridiron pendulum was invented 
by George Graham, of London, in 1715,— 
and that jewels were applied to watches, 
to prevent friction, by one Facio, a German. 

18. Clocks and watches are constructed 
on the same general principles. The me¬ 
chanism of both is composed of wheel- 
work, with contrivances to put it in mo¬ 
tion, and to regulate its movements. The 
moving or maintaining power in large 
clocks is a weight suspended by a cord to 
a cylinder. In watches, and sometimes in 
small clocks, this office is performed by a 
steel spring. In the clock, the regulation 
of the machinery is effected by the pendu¬ 
lum, and in the watch by the balance- 
wheel or spring balance. In either case, the 
maintaining power is prevented from ex¬ 
pending itself except in measured portions. 

19. The time is indicated by hands or 
pointers, which move on the dial plate. 
The minute hand is attached to the axle 
of the wheel which makes its revolution 

34 


in sixty minutes, and the hour hand to the 
one which makes the same revolution in 
twelve hours. Greater and smaller divi¬ 
sions of time are kept and indicated on the 
same principle. The part of a clock which 
keeps the time is called the going part; 
and that which strikes the hour, the strik¬ 
ing part. 

20. The division of labour is particu¬ 
larly conspicuous in the manufacture of 
watches, as the production of almost every 
part is the labour of a distinct artisan. 
The workman who polishes the several 
parts, and puts them together, is called 
among this class of tradesmen the finisher 
or watchmaker. Those, therefore, who 
deal largely in watches in England, pur¬ 
chase the different parts from the several 
manufacturers, and cause them to be put 
together by the finisher. 

21. Watches are extensively manufac¬ 
tured in various parts of Europe, but par¬ 
ticularly in French Switzerland, France, 
and England. The London watchmakers 
have been celebrated for good workman¬ 
ship, for more than a century and a half. 
This manufacture has not yet been com¬ 
menced in the United States, although the 
machinery, or inside work, is very com¬ 
monly imported in tin boxes, and after¬ 
wards supplied with dial plates and cases. 
This is especially the case with the more 
valuable kind of watches. 

22. Brass clocks are manufactured in 
most of our cities, and in many of our vil¬ 
lages; and wooden clocks, in great num¬ 
bers, in the state of Connecticut. These 
last are carried by pedlars into the remot¬ 
est parts of the country, so that almost 
every farmer in our land can divide the 
day by the oscillations of the pendulum. 

X 











THE COPPERSMITH, THE BUTTON MAKER, &c. 


COPPER. 

1. Copper is a ductile and malleable 
metal, of a pale yellowish red colour. It 
is sometimes found in a native state, but 
not in great quantities. The copper of 
commerce is principally extracted from the 
ores called sulphurets. Copper mines are 
wrought in many countries; but those of 
Sweden are said to furnish the purest cop¬ 
per of commerce, although those of the 
island of Anglesea are said to be the 
richest. 

2. In working sulphuretted ore, it is first | 
broken into pieces, and roasted with a 
moderate heat in a kiln to free it from sul¬ 
phur. When the ore is also largely com¬ 
bined with arsenic, a greater degree of 
heat is necessary. In such a case, it is 
spread upon a large floor of a reverbera¬ 


tory furnace, and exposed to a greater heat. 
By this treatment the sulphur and arsenic 
are soon driven off 1 . 

3. The ore is then transferred to the fus¬ 
ing furnace, and smelted in contact with 
fuel. The specific gravity of the copper 
causes it to sink beneath the scoria into a 
receptacle at the bottom of the furnace. 
To render the metal sufficiently pure, it 
requires repeated fusions, and even after 
these, it usually-contains a little lead, and 
a small portion of antimony. 

4. Alloys of copper. Copper is com¬ 
bined by fusion with a great number ot 
metals, and in such combinations, it is of 
great importance in the arts. When 
added in small quantities to gold and sil¬ 
ver, it increases their hardness without 
materially injuring their colour, or dimin- 





































THE COPPERSMITH. 


267 


ishing their malleability. An alloy, called 
white copper, imported from China, and 
denominated in that country pakfong, is 
composed of copper, zinc, nickel, and iron. 
It is very tough and malleable, and is easily 
cast, hammered, and polished. When well 
manufactured, it is very white, and as lit¬ 
tle liable to oxidation as silver. 

5. Copper, with about one-fourth of its 
weight of lead, forms pot-metal. Brass 
is an alloy of copper and zinc. The pro¬ 
portion of the latter metal varies from one- 
eighth to one-fourth. Mixtures, chiefly of 
these two metals, are also employed to 
form a variety of gold-coloured alloys, 
among which are prince's metal , pinch¬ 
beck , tombac, and bath metal. 

6. A series of alloys is formed by a 
combination of tin and copper. They are 
all more or less brittle, rigid, and sonorous, 
according to the relative proportions of the 
two metals; these qualities increasing with 
the amount of tin. The principal of these 
alloys are, bronze , employed in the casting 
of statues; gun-metal , of which pieces of 
artillery are made; bell-metal , of which 
bells are made; and speculum-metal , which 
is used for the mirrors of reflecting tele¬ 
scopes. 

7. The alloys of copper were very pre¬ 
valent among the nations of antiquity, and 
were used in many cases where iron would 
have answered a much better purpose. 
The instruments of husbandry and of war, 
as well as those for domestic uses gene¬ 
rally, were usually made of bronze; a 
composition which furnishes the best sub¬ 
stitute for iron and steel. The Corinthian 
brass, so celebrated in antiquity, was a 
mixture of copper, gold, and silver. 

8. The earliest information of the use 
of this metal by mankind, is found in the 
fourth chapter of Genesis, in which it is 
stated, that, “ Tubal-Cain was the in- | 


structor of every artificer in brass and 
iron.” This individual was the seventh 
generation from Adam, and was born about 
the year of the world 500. 


THE COPPERSMITH. 

1. Copper, being easily wrought, is ap¬ 
plied to many useful purposes. It is formed 
into sheets by heating it in a furnace, and 
compressing it between steel rollers. The 
operation of rolling constitutes a distinct 
business, and is performed in mills erected 
for the express purpose. 

2. The rolled sheets are purchased ac¬ 
cording to weight by the coppersmith, who 
employs them in sheathing the bottoms of 
ships, in covering the roofs of houses, and 
in constructing steam-boilers and stills. He 
also fabricates them into a variety of 
household utensils, although the use of this 
metal in preparing and preserving food, is 
attended with some danger, on account of 
the poisonous quality of the verdigris 
which is produced on the surface. 

3. An attempt has been made to obviate 
this difficulty, by lining the vessels with a 
thin coating of tin. This answers the 
purpose fully, so long as the covering of 
tin remains entire. But in cases of ex¬ 
posure to heat, it is liable to be melted off, 
unless it be kept covered with water. 

4. This metal can be reduced, by forg¬ 
ing, to any shape; but during the process, 
it will bear no heat greater than a red 
heat; and, as it does not admit of welding, 
like iron, different pieces are united with 
bolts or rivets of the same metal, as in 
the case of the larger kinds of vessels; or 
by means of solder made of brass and zinc, 
or zinc and lead, as in the case of those of 
smaller dimensions. 

5. Brass is applied to a greater variety 
of purposes in the arts than copper. This 
















268 


THE BUTTON MAKER. 


preference has arisen from its superior 
beauty, from the greater facility with 
which it can be formed into any required 
shape, and from its being less influenced 
by exposure to the ordinary chemical 
agents. 

6. Some of the articles manufactured 
of brass, are forged to the required form, 
and others are made of rolled sheets; 
but, in most cases, they pass through the 
hands of the brassfounder, who liquifies 
the metal and pours it into moulds of sand. 
For the sake of lightness, and economy of 
material, many articles are made hollow; 
in such cases, they are cast in halves or 
pieces, and these are afterwards soldered 
.ogether. 

7. Pieces which have been cast are 
generally reduced in size, and brought 
more exactly to the proposed form either 
in a lathe, with tools adapted to turning, 
or in the vice, with files, and other suit¬ 
able instruments. The operators in brass 
form a class of mechanics distinct from 
those who work in copper. 


THE BUTTON MAKER. 

1. Trifling as the manufacture of but- 
tons may appear, there are few which 
include a greater variety of operations. 
The number of substances of which they 
are made is very great; among which are 
gold, silver, various alloys of copper, steel, 
tin, glass, mother-of-pearl, bone, horn, and 
tortoise-shell, besides those which consist 
of moulds of wood or bone, covered with 
silk, mohair, or with similar materials. 

2. In making gilt buttons, the blanks or 
bodies are cut from rolled plates of brass, 
with a circular punch driven by means of 
a fly wheel. The blanks thus produced, 
are planished with a plain die, if they are 
intended for plain buttons; or with one 


having on it, an engraved figure, if they 
are to be of the ornamental kind. In either 
case, the die is usually driven with a fly 
press. 

3. The shanks are next placed on one 
side of the proposed button, and held there 
temporarily with a wire clasp. A small 
quantity of solder and rosin having been 
applied to each shank, the buttons are 
exposed to heat on an iron plate, until the 
solder shall have melted. The shanks 
having been thus firmly soldered on, the 
buttons are turned off smoothly on their 
edges in a lathe. 

4. The buttons are next freed from 
oxide, by immersing them in diluted nitric 
acid, and by friction in a lathe. .They are 
then put into a vessel containing a quantity 
of nitric acid supersaturated with mercury. 
The superior attraction of the copper for 
the acid, causes a portion of it to be ab¬ 
sorbed ; and the mercury held in solution 
by it is deposited on the buttons, which 
are next put into a vessel containing an 
amalgam of mercury and gold. 

5. The amalgam is formed by melting 
the two metals together, and afterwards 
pouring them into cold water. The com 
position having been put into a bag of 
chamois leather, and a part of the mercury 
pressed through the pores, the remaining 
portion is left in a condition* approaching 
the consistency of butter, and in a fit state 
for use. Before the buttons are put into 
the amalgam, a small quantity of nitric 
acid is added. 

6. The buttons having been covered 
with the amalgam, as before stated, the 
mercury is discharged, that the gold may 
adhere directly to the brass. This object 
is effected by heating the buttons in an 
iron pan, until the amalgam begins to melt, 
when they are thrown into a large felt cap, 
and stirred with a brush. This operation 













THE PIN-MAKER. 


269 


i3 repeated several times, until all the mer¬ 
cury has been volatilized. The whole pro¬ 
cess is finished by again burnishing them, 
and putting them on cards for sale. 

7. White metal buttons are made of 
brass alloyed with different proportions of 
tin. They are cast, ten or twelve dozens 
ota time, in moulds formed in sand, by 
means of a pattern. The shanks are 
placed in the centre of the moulds, so 
that, when the metal is poured in, they 
become a part of the buttons. The but¬ 
tons are next polished in a lathe, with 
grindstone dust and oil, rotten stone and 
crocus martis. They are then boiled with 
a quantity of grained tin, in a solution of 
crude red tartar or argol, and lastly, finished 
with finely pulverized crocus, applied with 
buff leather. 

8. Glass buttons are made of various 
colours, in imitation of the opal and other 
precious stones. While manufacturing 
them, the glass is kept in a state of fusion, 
and a portion of it for each button is 
nipped off out of the crucible with a me¬ 
tallic mould, somewhat similar to that 
used for running bullets, the workman 
having previously inserted into it the 
shank. 


THE PIN-MAKER. 

1. There is scarcely any commodity 
cheaper than pins, and none which passes 
through the hands of a greater number of 
workmen in the manufacture; twenty-five 
persons being successively employed upon 
the material, before it appears in these 
useful articles, ready for sale. 

2. The wire having been reduced to the 
required size, is cut into pieces long enough 
to make six pins. These pieces are brought 
to a point at each end by holding them, a 
handful at a time, on a grindstone. This 


part of the operation is performed with 
great rapidity, as a boy twelve years of 
age can sharpen 16,000 in an hour. When 
the wires have been thus pointed, the 
length of a pin is taken off at each end, 
by another hand. The grinding and cut¬ 
ting off are repeated, until the whole 
length has been used up. 

3. The next operation is that of forming 
the heads, or, as the pin-makers term it, 
head-spinning. This is done with a spin¬ 
ning-wheel , by which one piece of wire is 
wound upon another; the former, by this 
means, being formed into a spiral coil 
similar to that of the springs in elastic 
suspenders. The coiled wire is cut into 
suitable portions with the shears, every 
two turns of it being designed for one 
head. These heads are fastened to the 
lengths by means of an instrument like a 
hammer, which is put in motion with the 
foot, while the hands are employed in tak¬ 
ing up, adjusting, and placing the parts 
upon the anvil. 

4. The pins are now finished, as to 
their form ; but still they are merely brass. 
To give them the requisite whiteness, they 
are thrown into a copper vessel, containing 
a solution of tin and the lees of wine. 
After a while, the tin leaves the liquid, 
and fastens on the pins, which, when taken 
out, assume a white appearance. They 
are next polished by agitating them with 
a quantity of bran in a vessel moved in a 
rotary manner. The bran is separated from 
them, as chaff is separated from wheat. 

5. Pins are also made of iron wire, and 
coloured black by a varnish composed of 
linseed oil and lamp-black. This kind is 
designed for persons in mourning. Pins 
are likewise made with a head at each 
end, to be used by females in adjusting the 
hair for the night, without the danger of 
pricking. Several machines have been 

X 2 











270 


THE PIN-MAKER. 


invented for this manufacture, one of which 
makes a solid head from the body of the 
pin itself; but the method just described 
still continues to be the prevailing one. 

6. Pins are made of various sizes. The 
smallest are called minikins, the next 
short whites. The larger kinds are num¬ 
bered from three to twenty, each size in¬ 
creasing one half from three to five, one 
from five to fourteen, and two from four¬ 
teen to twenty. They are put up in pa¬ 
pers, according to their numbers, as we 
usually see them, or in papers containing 
all sizes. In the latter case, they are sold 
by the pound. 

7. It is difficult, or even impossible, to 
trace the origin of this useful little article. 
It is probable, however, that it was in¬ 
vented in France, in the fifteenth century. 
One of the prohibitions of a statute, relat¬ 
ing to the pin-makers of Paris of the six¬ 
teenth century, forbid any manufacturer to 
open more than one shop for the sale of his 
wares, except on new-year’s day, and on 
the day previous. 

8. Hence we may infer, that it was cus¬ 
tomary to give pins as new-year’s presents, 
or that it was the usual practice to make 
the chief purchases at this time. At length 
it became a practice, in many parts of 
Europe, for the husband to allow to his 
wife a 6um of money for this purpose. 


We see here the origin of the phrase, pin- 
money, which is now applied to designate 
the sum allowed to the wife for her per¬ 
sonal expenses generally. 

9. Prior to the year 1443, the art ot 
making pins from brass wire was not 
known in England. Until that period, 
they were made of bone, ivory, or box¬ 
wood. Brass pins are first mentioned in 
the English statute book in 1483, when 
those of foreign manufacture were pro¬ 
hibited. 

10. Although these useful implements 
are made in London, and in several othei 
places in England, yet Gloucester is the 
principal seat of this manufacture in that 
kingdom. It was introduced into that 
place in 1626, by John Silsby, and it now 
contains nine distinct manufactories, m 
which are employed about 1500 persons, 
chiefly women and children. Pins are 
also manufactured extensively in the vil¬ 
lages near Paris, and in several other 
places in France, as well as in Germany. 

11 . The business of making pins has been 
lately commenced in the city of New- 
York, and it is said that the experiment 
has been so successful, both in the perfec¬ 
tion of the workmanship, and in the rapid¬ 
ity of the production, that pins of Ame¬ 
rican manufacture bid fair to compete, at 
least, with those of foreign count; ios. 











THE TINPLATE WORKER, &c. 


TIN. 

1. Tin is a whitish metal, less elastic, 
and less sonorous than any other metal, 
except lead. It is found in the mountains 
which separate Galicia from Portugal, and 
in the mountains between Saxony and 
Bohemia. It also occurs in the peninsula 
of Molucca, in India, Mexico, and Chili. 
But the mines of Cornwall and Devon¬ 
shire, in England, are more productive 
than those of all other countries united. 

2. There are two ores of tin, one of 
which is called tin stone , and the other 
tin pyrites; the former of these is the 
kind from which the metal is extracted. 
The ore is usually found in veins, which 
often penetrate the hardest rocks. When 
near the surface of the earth, or at their 
commencement, they are very small, but 


they increase in size, as they penetrate 
the earth. The direction of these veins, 
or, as the miners call them, lodes, is usu¬ 
ally east and west. 

3. The miners follow the lode, whereso¬ 
ever it may lead; and when they extend 
to such a depth that the waters become 
troublesome in the mine, as is frequently 
the case, they are pumped up with ma¬ 
chinery worked by steam, or drawn off by 
means of a drain, called an adit. The lat- 

t 

ter method is generally adopted, when 
practicable. 

4. The ore is raised to the surface 
through shafts, which have been sunk in a 
perpendicular direction upon the vein. 
At the top of the shaft, is placed a wind¬ 
lass, to draw up the kibbuts , or baskets, 
containing the ore. Near St. Austle, in 
































































































272 


TIN 


Cornwall, is a mine which has not less 
than fifty shafts, half of which are now in 
use. Some of the veins have been w T orked 
a full mile, and some of the shafts are 
nearly seven hundred feet deep. 

5. At St. Austle Moor, there is a mine of 
stream tin , about three miles in length. 
The tin, together with other substances, 
has been deposited in a valley, by means of 
small streams from the hills. The deposite 
is about twenty feet deep, and the several 
materials of which it is composed, have 
settled in strata, according to their specific 
gravity. The ore, being the heaviest, is 
of course, found at the bottom. 

6. The ore, from whatever source it 
may be obtained, is first pulverized in a 
stamping mill, and then washed, to free it 
from the stony matter with which it may 
be united. The ore, thus partially freed 
from foreign matter, is put into a rever¬ 
beratory furnace, with fuel and limestone, 
and heated intensely. The contents of 
the furnace having been brought to a state 
of fusion, the lime unites with the earthy 
matters, and flows with them into a liquid 
glass, while the carbon of the coal unites 
with the tin. The metal sinks, by its 
specific gravity, to the bottom of the fur¬ 
nace, and is let out, after having been ex¬ 
posed to the heat about ten hours. 

7. The tin thus obtained is very impure: 
it therefore requires a second fusion, to 
render it fit for use. After having been 
melted a second time, it is cast into blocks 
weighing about three hundred pounds. 
These blocks are taken to places desig¬ 
nated by law, and there stamped, by in¬ 
spectors appointed for the purpose, by the 
Duke of Cornwall. In performing this 
operation, the inspector cuts off a corner, 
and stamps the block at that place, with 
the proper seal, and with the name of the 
smelter. These precautions give assur¬ 


ance that the metal is pure, and that the 
duty has been paid. 

8. The duty is four shillings sterling 
per hundred weight, which is paid to the 
Duke of Cornwall, who is also Prince of 
Wales. The revenue from this source 
amounts to about thirty thousand pounds a 
year. The owner of the soil also receives 
one sixth, or one eighth of the ore as his 
dishy as the miners call it The miners 
and the smelters receive certain propor¬ 
tions of the metal for their services. 

9. Tin was procured from Britain at a 
very early period. The Phoenicians are 
said by Strabo to have passed the pillars of 
Hercules, now the Straits of Gibraltar, 
about 1200 years before Christ. But the 
time at which they discovered the tin 
islands, which they denominated Casso- 
rides , cannot be ascertained from history, 
although it is evident from many circum¬ 
stances, that the Scilly Islands, and the 
western ports of Britain, were the places 
from which these early navigators procured 
the tin with which they supplied the parts 
of the world to which they traded. 

10. For a long time, the Phoenicians 
and the Carthaginians enjoyed the tin 
trade to the exclusion of all other nations. 
After the destruction of Carthage by the 
Romans, a colony of Phocean Greeks, 
established at Marseilles, carried on this 
trade; but it came into the hands of the 
Romans, after the conquest of Britain by 
Julius Caesar. 

11. The Cornish mines furnish incon¬ 
testable proofs of having been worked 
many hundred years ago. In digging to 
the depth of forty or fifty fathoms, the 
miners frequently meet with large timbers 
embedded in the ore. Tools for mining 
have also been found in the same, or simi¬ 
lar situations. The mines, therefore, 
which had been exhausted of the ore, 









TIN. 


273 


nave, in the course of time, been replen¬ 
ished by a process of nature. 

12. To what purposes the ancients ap¬ 
plied all the tin which they procured at 
so much labour and cost, is not precisely 
known. It is probable, that the Tyrians 
consumed a portion of it, in dyeing 1 their 
purple and scarlet. It formed then, as it 
now does, many important alloys with cop¬ 
per. The mirrors of antiquity were made 
of a composition of these metals. 

13. The method of extracting tin from 
its ores was probably very defective in 
ancient times. At least, it was so for 
several centuries before the time of Eli¬ 
zabeth, when Sir Francis Godolphin intro¬ 
duced great improvements in the tin works. 
The use of the reverbatory furnace was 
commenced about the beginning of the 
eighteenth century, and soon after, pit- 
coal was substituted for char-coal. 

14. This metal, in its solid state, is 
called block-tin. It is applied, without 
admixture with any other metal, to the 
formation of vessels, which are not to be 
exposed to a temperature much above that 
of hot water. A kind of ware called 
biddery ware , is made of tin alloyed with 
a little copper. The vessels made of this 
composition are rendered black by the ap¬ 
plication of nitre, common salt, and sal 
ammoniac. Foil is also made by pressing 
it between steel rollers, or by hammering, 
as in the case of gold, by the gold-beaters. 

15. But tin is most extensively applied 
as a coating to other metals, stronger than 
itself, and more subject to oxidation. The 
plates which are usually denominated tin, 
are thin sheets of iron coated with this 
metal. The iron is reduced to thin plates 
in a rolling-mill, and these are prepared for 
being tinned, by first steeping them in 
water acidulated with muriatic acid, and I 

35 


then freeing them from oxide by heating, 
scaling, and rolling them. 

16. The tin is melted in deep oblong 
vessels, and kept in a state of fusion by a 
charcoal fire. To preserve its surface from 
oxidation a quantity of fat, or oil, is kept 
floating upon it. The plates are dipped 
perpendicularly into the tin, and held there 
for some time. When withdrawn, they 
are found to have acquired a bright coat¬ 
ing of the melted metal. The dipping is 
performed three times for single tin plate , 
and six times for double tin plate. The 
tin penetrates the iron, and forms an alloy. 

17. Various articles of iron, such as 
spoons, nails, bridle-bits, and small chains, 
are coated with tin, by immersing them in 
that metal, while in a state of fusion. 
The great affinity of tin and copper, ren¬ 
ders it practicable to apply a thin layer of 
the former metal to the surface of the lat¬ 
ter ; and this is often done, as stated in the 
article on the coppersmith. 

18. Tin and quicksilver are applied to 
the polished surface of glass, for the pur¬ 
pose of forming mirrors. In silvering 
plain looking-glasses, a flat, horizontal 
slab is used as a table. This is first 
covered with paper, and then with a sheet 
of tin foil of the size of the glass. A 
quantity of quicksilver is next laid on 
the foil, and spread over it with a roll of 
cloth, or with a hare’s foot. 

19. After as much quicksilver as the 
surface will hold, has been spread on, and 
while it is yet in a fluid state, the glass is 
shoved on the sheet of foil from the edge 
of the table, driving a part of the liquid 
metal before it. The glass is then placed 
in an inclined position, that every unne¬ 
cessary portion of the quicksilver may be 
drained off; after which it is again laid 
flat upon the slab, and pressed for a con- 












274 


LEAD. 


siderabie time with heavy weights. The 
remaining quicksilver amalgamates with 
the tin, and forms a permanent, reflecting 
surface. 


vJjthe tin-plate worker. 

1. The materials on which the tinner, 
or tin-plate worker operates, are the rolled 
sheets of iron, coated with tin, as just de¬ 
scribed. He procures the sheets by the 
box, and applies them to the roofs and other 
parts of houses, or works them up into 
various utensils, such as pails, pans, bake- 
ovens, measures, cups, and ducts for con¬ 
veying water from the roofs of houses. 

2. In making the different articles, the 
sheets are cut into pieces of proper size, 
with a huge pair of shears, and these are 
brought to the proposed form by different 
tools, adapted to the purpose. The seve¬ 
ral parts are united by means of a solder 
made of a composition of tin and lead. 
The solder is melted, and made to run to 
any part, at the will of the workman, by 
means of a copper instrument, heated for 
the purpose, in a small furnace, with a 
charcoal fire. 

3. On examining almost any vessel of 
tin ware, it will be perceived, that, where 
the parts are united, one of the edges, at 
least, and sometimes both, are turned, that 
the solder may be easily and advantage¬ 
ously applied. It will also be discovered 
that iron wire is applied to those parts re¬ 
quiring more strength than is possessed by 
the tin itself. The edges and handles are 
especially strengthened in this manner. 

4. The edges of the tin were formerly 
turned on a steel edge, or a kind of anvil 
called a stock, with a mallet; and in some 
cases, this method is still pursued, but this 
part of the work is now more expeditiously 


performed, by means of several machine* 
invented by Seth Peck, of Hartford Co., 
Connecticut. These machines greatly ex¬ 
pedite the manufacture of tin wares, and 
they have contributed much towards re¬ 
ducing their price. 

5. This maiiufacture is an extensive 
branch of our domestic industry; and vast 
quantities of tin, in the shape of various 
utensils, are sold in different parts of the 
United States, by a class of itinerant mer¬ 
chants, called tin-pedlars , who receive in 
payment for their goods, rags, old pewter, 
brass, and copper, together with feathers, 
hogs’ bristles, and sometimes ready money. 


LEAD. 

1. Next to iron, lead is the most exten¬ 
sively diffused, and the most abundant 
metal. It is found in various combinations 
in nature, but that mineralized by sulphur 
is the most abundant This ore is denom¬ 
inated galena by the mineralogists, and is 
the kind from which nearly all the lead of 
commerce is extracted. 

2. The ore having been powdered, and 
freed, as far as possible, from stony matter, 
is fused either in a blast or reverberatory 
furnace. In the smelting, lime is used as 
a flux, and this combines with the sulphur 
and earthy matters, while the lead unites 
with the carbon of the fuel, and sinks to 
the bottom of the furnace, whence it is 
occasionally let out into a reservoir. 

3. Lead extracted from galena, often 
contains a sufficient proportion of silver to 
render it an object to extract it. This is 
done by oxidizing the lead, by means of 
heat, and a current of air. At tin* end of 
this operation, the silver remains with a 
small quantity of lead, which is afterwards 
separated by the process of cupeilation 













LEAD. 


The oxide is applied to the purposes for 
which it is used, or it is reduced again to 
a metallic state. 

4. The lead mines on the Mississippi 
are very productive, and very extensive. 
The principal mines are in the neighbour¬ 
hood of Galena, in the north-western part 
of Illinois, and these are the richest on the 
globe. The lead mines in the vicinity of 
Potosi, Missouri, are also very productive. 
About 3,000,000 pounds are annually 
smelted in the United States. 

.5. Lead, on account of its easy fusibility 
and softness, can be readily applied to a 
variety of purposes. It is cast in moulds, 
to form weights, bullets, and other small 
articles. Cisterns are lined, and roots, &c. 
are covered with sheet lead; and also in 
the construction of pumps and aqueducts, 
leaden pipes are considerably used. The 
mechanic who applies this metal to these 
purposes, is called a plumber. 

6. Lead is cast into sheets in sand, on 
large tables having a high ledge on each 
side. The melted lead is poured out upon 
the surface from a box, which is made to 
move on rollers across the table, and is 
equalized, by passing over it, a straight 
piece of wood called a strike. The sheets 
thus formed are afterwards reduced in 
thickness, and spread to greater dimen¬ 
sions, by compressing them between steel 
rollers. 

7. Leaden pipes may be made in various 
ways. They were at first formed of sheet 
lead, bent round a cylindrical bar, or man¬ 
drel, and then soldered ; but pipes formed 
in this manner were liable to crack and 
break. The second method consists in 
casting successive portions of the tube in a 
cylindrical mould, having in it a core. As 
fast as the tube gets cold, it is drawn nearly 
out of the mould, and more lead is poured 


in, which unites with the tube previously 
formed. But pipes cast in this way are 
found to have imperfections, arising from 
flaws and air bubbles. 

8. In the third method* which is the one 
most commonly practised, a thick tube of 
lead is cast upon one end of a long polished 
iron cylinder or mandrel of the size of the 
bore of the intended pipe. The lead is 
then reduced, and drawn out in length, 
either by drawing it on the mandrel through 
circular holes of different sizes, in a steel 
plate, or by rolling it between contiguous 
rollers, which have a semicircular groove 
cut round the circumference of each. 

9. The fourth method consists in forc¬ 
ing melted lead, by means of a pump, into 
one end of a mould, while it is discharged 
in the form of a pipe, at the opposite end. 
Care is taken so to regulate the tempera¬ 
ture, that the lead is chilled just before it 
leaves the mould. 

10. Shot is likewise made of lead. 
These instruments of death are usually 
cast in high towers constructed for the 
purpose. The lead is previously alloyed 
with a small portion of arsenic, to increase 
the cohesion of its particles, and to cause 
it to assume more readily the globular form. 
It is melted at the top of the tower, and 
poured into a vessel perforated at the bot¬ 
tom with a great number of holes. 

11. The lead, after running through 
these perforations, immediately separates 
into drops, which cool in falling through 
the height of the tower. They are re¬ 
ceived below in a reservoir of water, 
which breaks the fall. The shot are then 
proved by rolling them down a board 
placed in an inclined position. r I hose 
which are irregular in shape roll oft at the 
sides, or stop, while the spherical ones 
continue on to the end. 
















THE IRON FOUNDER, &c. 


IROX. 

1. The properties vvhicn iron possesses, 
in its various forms, render it the most use¬ 
ful of all the metals. The toughness of 
malleable iron renders it applicable to 
purposes where great strength is required ; 
while its difficult fusibility, and property 
of softening by heat, so as to admit of 
forging and welding, cause it to be easily 
wrought. 

2. Cast iron, from its cheapness, and 
from the facility with which its form may 
be changed, is made the material of nu- 
merous structures. Steel , which is the 
most important compound of iron, exceeds 
all other metals in hardness and tenacity; 
and hence it is particularly adapted to the 
fabrication of cutting instruments. 

3. Iron was discovered, and applied to 


the purposes of the arts at a very early 
period. Tubal-Cain who was the seventh 
generation from Adam, “wasan instructor 
of every artificer in brass and iron.” Noah 
must have used much of this metal in the 
construction of the ark, and of course, he 
must have transmitted a knowledge of it 
to his posterity. 

4. Nevertheless, the mode of separating 
it from the various substances with which 
it is usually combined, was but imperfectly 
understood by the ancients; and their use 
of it was, most likely, confined chiefly to 
the limited quantity found in a state 
nearly pure. Gold, silver, copper, and tin, 
are more easily reduced to a state in which 
they are available in the arts. They were, 
therefore, often used in ancient times, 
for purposes to which iron would h?.ve 





















































IRON 


277 


been more applicable. This was the case 
especially with copper and tin. 

5. Fifteen distinct kinds of iron ore, 
have been discovered by mineralogists;- 
but of these, not more than four have been 
employed in making iron. There are, 
however, several varieties of the latter 
kind, all of which are classed by the 
smelters of iron under the general denom¬ 
ination of bog and mountain, or hard ores. 

6. The former has much of the appear¬ 
ance of red, brown, or yellowish earth, 
and is found in beds from one to six feet j 
thick, and in size, from one fourth of a rood 
to twenty acres. The mountain, or hard 
ore, to a superficial observer, differs but 
little in its appearance from common rocks 
or stones. It is found in regular strata in 
hills and mountains, or in detached masses 
of various sizes, in hilly land, from two to 
eight feet below the surface. 

7. The bog ore is supposed to be a de- 

posite from water which has passed over 
the hard ore. This is evidently the case 
in hilly countries, where both kinds occur. 
Some iron-masters use the bog; some, the 
hard; and others, both kinds together. In 
this particular, they are governed by the 1 
ore, or ores, which may exist in their { 
vicinitv. j 

•j 

8. The apparatus in which the ore is j 
smelted, is called a blast furnace, which j 
is a large pyramidal stack, built of hewn 
stone or brick, from twenty to sixty feet in 
height, with a cavity of a proportionate 
size. In shape, this cavity is near that of 
an egg with the largest end at the bottom, 
and is lined with fire brick or stone, capa¬ 
ble of resisting an intense heat. 

9. Below this cavity is placed the 
hearth, which is composed of four or five 
large coarse sand stones, split out of a solid 
rock, and chiselled, so as to suit each other 
exactly. These form a cavity for the re¬ 


ception of the iron and dross, when melted 
above. The hearth requires to be removed 
at the end of every blast, which is usually 
continued from six to ten months in succes¬ 
sion, unless accidentally interrupted. 

10. The preparation for a blast, consists 
principally in providing charcoal and ore. 
The wood for the former is cut in the win¬ 
ter and spring, and charred and brought to 
the furnace during the spring, summer, 
and autumn. What is not used during the 
time of Iiauling, is stocked in coal-houses, 
provided for the purpose. 

11. The wood is charred in the following 
manner. It is first piled in heaps of a 
spherical form, and covered with leaves 
and dirt. The fire is applied to the wood, 
at the top, and when it has been sufficiently 
ignited, the pit is covered in; but to sup¬ 
port combustion, several air-holes are left 
near the ground. The colliers are obliged 
to watch the pit night and day, lest, by 
the caving in of the dirt, too much air be 
admitted, and the wood be thereby con¬ 
sumed to ashes. 

12. When the wood has been reduced 
to charcoal, the fire is partially extin¬ 
guished by closing the air-holes. The 
coals are drawn from the pit with an iron- 
tocthed rake, and while this is being per¬ 
formed, the dust mingles with them, and 
smothers the fire which may yet remain. 
Wood is also charred in kilns made of brick. 

13. The hard ore is dug by miners , or, 
as they are commonly denominated, ore- 
diggers. In the prosecution of their la¬ 
bour, they sometimes follow a vein into a 
hill or mountain. When the ore is found 
in strata, or lumps, near the surface, they 
dig down to it. This kind of ore com¬ 
monly contains sulphur and arsenic, and to 
free it from those substances, and to render 
it less compact, it is roasted in kilns, with 
refuse charcoal, which is too fine to be 

Y 













278 


THE IRON FOUNDER 


used for any other purpose. It is then 
broken to a suitable fineness with a ham¬ 
mer. or in a crushing mill. The bog ore 
seldom needs any reduction. 

14.. Every preparation having been 
made, the furnace is gradually heated with 
charcoal, and by degrees filled to the top, 
when a small quantity of the ore is thrown 
on, and the blast is applied at the bottom, 
near the hearth. The blast is supplied by 
means of one or two c)lindrical bellows, 
the piston of which is moved by steam or 
water power. 

15. The coal is measured in baskets, 
holding about one bushel and a half; and 
the ore, in boxes holding about one peck. 
Six baskets of coal, and as many boxes of 
ore as the furnace can carry, is called a 
half charge , which is renewed as often as 
it may be necessary to keep the furnace 
full. With every charge is also thrown in 
one box of limestone. 

16. The limestone is used as a flux, to 
aid in the fusion of the ore, and to separate 
its earthy portions from the iron. The iron 
sinks by its specific gravity, to the bottom 
of the hearth, and the earthy portions, now 
converted into glass by the action of the 
limestone and heat, also sink, and float 
upon the liquid iron. This scum, or, as it 
is usually culled, scoria, slag, or cinder, is 
occasionally removed by instruments made 
for the purpose. 

17. When the hearth has become full 
of iron, the metal is let out at one corner 
of it, into a bed of sand, called a pig-bed , 
which is from twenty to thirty feet in 
length, and five or six in width. One con- 
cave channel, called the sow , extends the 
whole length of the bed, from which forty 
or fifty smaller ones, called pig moulds , 
extend at right angles. The metal, when 
cast in these moulds, is called pig iron , 
and the masses of iron, pigs. 


18. Pig iron, or crude iron , as it is some¬ 
times called, being saturated with carbon 
and oxygen, and containing also a portion 
of scoria, is too brittle for any other pur¬ 
pose than castings. Many of these, such 
as stoves, grates, mill-irons, plough-irons, 
and kitchen utensils, are commonly manu¬ 
factured at blast furnaces, and in many 
cases nearly all the iron is used for these 
purposes. In such cases, the metal is 
taken in a liquid state, from the hearth, in 
ladles. 

19. In Great Britain and Ireland, and 
perhaps in some other parts of Europe, 
iron ore is smelted with coke> a fuel which 
bears the same relation to pit coal, that 
charcoal does to wood. It is obtained by 
heating or baking the coal in a sort of 
oven or kiln, bv which it becomes charred. 
During the process, a sort of bituminous 
tar is disengaged from it, which is care¬ 
fully preserved, and applied to many use¬ 
ful purposes. 


THE IRON FOUNDER. 

1. The appellation of founder is given 
to the superintendent of a blast furnace, 
and likewise to those persons who make 
castings either of iron, or any other metal. 
In every case, the term is qualified by a 
word prefixed, indicating the metal in 
which he operates, or the kind of castings 
which he may make; as, 6r<m-founder, 
iron-founder, or bell-i bunder. But what¬ 
soever may be the material in which he 
operates, or the kind of castings which he 
may produce, his work is performed on the 
same general principle. 

2. The sand most generally employed 
by the founder is loam , which possesses a 
sufficient proportion of argillaceous mat¬ 
ter, to render it moderately cohesive, when 
damp. The moulds are formed by burying 


















THE IRON FOUNDER. 


279 


in the sand, wooden or metallic patterns, 
having 1 the exact shape of the respective 
articles to be cast. To exemplify the ge¬ 
neral manner of forming moulds, we will 
explain the process of forming one for the 
spider , a very common kitchen utensil. 

3. The pattern is laid upon a plain board, 
which in this application is called a follow 
board , and surrounded with a frame called 
a flask , three or four inches deep. This 
is filled with sand, and consolidated with 
rammers, and by treading it with the feet. 
Three wooden patterns for the legs are 
next buried in the sand, and a hole is made 
for pouring in the metal. 

4. One side of the mould having been 
thus formed, the flask, with its contents, is 
turned overhand, the follow board having 
been removed, another flask is applied to 
the first, and filled with sand in the same 
manner. The two flasks are then taken 
apart, and the main pattern, together with 
those for the legs, removed. The whole 
operation is finished, by again closing the 
flasks. 

5. The mode of proceeding in forming 
moulds for different articles, is varied, of 
course, to suit their conformation. The 
pattern is often composed of several pieces, 
and the number and form of the flasks are 
also varied accordingly. Cannon balls are 
sometimes cast in moulds of iron; and to 
prevent the melted metal from adhering 
to them, the inside is covered with pulver¬ 
ized black lead. 

6. Rollers for flattening iron are also 
cast in iron moulds. This method is called 
chill casting , and has for its object the 
hardening of the surface of the metal, by 
the sudden reduction of the temperature, 
which takes place in consequence of the 
great power of the mould, as a conductor 
of heat. These rollers are afterwards 
turned in a powerful lathe. 


7. Several moulders work together ii? 
one foundry; and, when they have com¬ 
pleted a sufficient number of moulds, they 
fill them with the liquid metal. The me¬ 
tal for small articles is dipped from the 
hearth or crucible of the furnace with iron 
ladles, defended on every side with a thin 
coating of clay mortar, and poured thence 
into the moulds. But in casting articles 
requiring a great amount of iron, such as 
cannon, and some parts of the machinery 
for steam engines, the iron is transferred 
to the moulds in a continued stream 
through a channel, leading from the bot¬ 
tom of the crucible. In such cases, the 
moulds are constructed in a pit dug in the 
earth near the furnace. Large ladles full 
of iron are, in some founderies, emptied 
into the moulds by the aid of huge cranes. 

8. Although the moulders have their 
distinct work to perform, yet they often 
assist each other in lifting heavy flasks; 
and in all cases, in filling the moulds. 
The latter operation is very labourious; 
but the exertion is continued but a short 
time, since the moulds, constructed during 
a whole day can be filled in ten or fifteen 
minutes. 

9. Iron founderies are usually located 
in, or near, large cities, or towns, and are 
supplied with crude iron, or pig metal from 
the blast furnaces in the interior. The 
metal is fused either with charcoal or 
with pit coal. In the former case, an arti¬ 
ficial blast is necessary to ignite the fuel; 
but in the latter, this object is often ef¬ 
fected in air furnaces, which are so con¬ 
structed that a sufficient current of air is 
obtained directly from the atmosphere. 

10. The practice of making castings of 
iron is comparatively modern: those of the 
ancients were made of brass, and other 
alloys of copper. Until the beginning of 
the last century, iron was but little applied 









280 


THE BAR IRON MAKER. 


in this way. This use of it, however, has 
extended so rapidly, that cast iron is now 
the material of almost every kind of ma¬ 
chinery, as well as that of innumerable 
implements of common application. Even 
bridges and rail-roads have been con¬ 
structed of cast-iron. 


TUE BAR IRON MAKER. 

1. Bar iron is manufactured from pig- 
iron, from blooms , and directly from the 
ore; the process is consequently varied in 
conformity with the state of the material 
on which it is commenced. 

2. In producing bar iron from pigs, the 
latter are melted in a furnace similar to a 
smith’s forge, with a sloping cavity ten or 
twelve inches below, where the blast-pipe 
is admitted. This hearth is filled with 
charcoal and dross, or scoria; and upon 
these is laid the metal and more coal. 
After the coal has become well ignited, 
the blast is applied. The iron soon begins 
to melt, and as it liquefies, it runs into the 
cavity or hearth below: here, being out of 
the reach of the blast, it soon becomes 
solid. 

3. It is then taken out, and fused again 
in the same manner, and afterwards a third 
time. After the third heat, when the iron 
has become solid enough to bear beating, 
it is slightly hammered with a sledge, to 
free it from the adhering scoria. It is 
then returned to the furnace, but being 
placed out of the reach of the blast, it 
soon becomes sufficiently compact to bear 
the tilt-hammer. 

4. With this instrument, the iron is 
beaten, until the mass has been considera¬ 
bly extended, when it is cut into several 
pieces, which, by repeated beating and 
forging, are extended into bars, as we see 
them for sale. The tilt-hammer weighs 


from six to twelve hundred pounds, and 
is most commonly moved by water power. 

5. For manufacturing bar iron directly 
from the ore, the furnace is similar in its 
construction to the one just described, and 
the operations throughout are very similar. 
A fire is first made upoir the hearth with 
charcoal; and, when the fuel has become 
well ignited, a quantity of ore is thrown 
upon it, and the ore and the fuel are re¬ 
newed as occasion may require. As the 
iron melts, and separates from the earthy 
portions of the ore, it sinks to the bottom 
of the hearth. The scoria is let off occa¬ 
sionally, through holes made for the pur¬ 
pose. When iron enough has accumulated 
to make a loop , as the mass is called, it is 
taken out, and forged into bars under the 
tilt-hammer. 

6. This way of making bar iron is de¬ 
nominated the method of the Catalan 
forge , and is by far the cheapest, and most 
expeditious. It is in general use in all the 
southern countries of Europe, and it is be¬ 
ginning to be extensively practised in the 
United States. When a Catalan forge is 
employed in making blooms , it is called a 
bloomery. 

7. The blooms are about eighteen inches 
long, and four in diameter. They are 
formed under the tilt-hammer, and differ 
in substance from bar iron in nothing, ex¬ 
cept that, having been imperfectly forged, 
the fibres of the metal are not fully ex¬ 
tended, nor firmly united. The blooms- 
are manufactured in the interior of the 
country where wood is abundant, and sold 
by the ton, frequently, in the cities, to be 
converted into bar or sheet iron. 

8. These blooms are converted into bar 
iron, by first heating them in an air fur¬ 
nace, by means of stone coal, and then 
passing them between chill cast iron roll¬ 
ers. The rollers are filled with grooves, 














THE WIRE DRAWER. 


281 


which gradually decrease in size from one 
side to the other. When the iron has 
passed through these, the bloom of eigh¬ 
teen inches in length, has become ex¬ 
tended to nearly as many feet. The bar 
thus formed having been cut into four 
pieces, the process is finished by welding 
them together laterally, and again passing 
them between another set of rollers, by 
which they are brought to the form in w T hich 
they are to remain. 

9. Blooms are also laminated into sheets, 
on the same principle, between smooth 
rollers, which are screwed nearer to each 
other every time the bloom is passed be¬ 
tween them. Very thin plates, like those 
which are tinned for the tin-plate workers, 
are repeatedly doubled, and passed between 
the rollers, so that in the thinnest plates, 
sixteen thicknesses are rolled together, oil 
being interposed to prevent their cohe¬ 
sion. The last rollings are performed 
while the metal is cold. 

10. Rolled plates of iron are frequently 
cut into rods, and narrow strips. This 
operation is performed by means of ele¬ 
vated angular rings upon rollers, which 
are so situated that they act reciprocally 
upon each other, and cut like shears. 
These rings are separately made, so that 
they can be removed for the purpose of 
sharpening them, when necessary. The 
mills in which the operations of rolling 
and slitting iron are performed, are called 
rolling and slitting mills. 


THE WIRE DRAWER. 

1. Iron is reduced to the form of wire 
by drawing rods of it through conical 
holes in a steel plate. To prepare the 
metal for the operation of drawing, it is 
subjected to the action of the hammer, or 
to that of rollers, until it has been reduced j 

36 


to a rod sufficiently small to be forced 
through the largest hole. The best wire 
is produced from rods formed by the me¬ 
thod first mentioned. 

2. Various machines are employed to 
overcome the resistance of the plate to the 
passage of the wire. In general, the wire 
is held by pincers, near the end, and as 
fast as it is drawn through the plate, it is 
w’ound upon a roller, by the action of a 
wheel and axle, or other power. Some¬ 
times, a rack and pinion are employed for 
this purpose, and sometimes a lever, which 
acts at intervals, and which takes fresh 
hold of the wire every time the force is 
applied. 

3. The finer kinds of wire are made 
from the larger by repeated drawings, 
each of which is performed through a 
smaller hole than the preceding. As the 
metal becomes stiff and hard, by the repe¬ 
tition of this process, it is occasionally an¬ 
nealed, to restore its ductility. Wire is 
formed of other metals by the same gene¬ 
ral method. 


THE STEEL MANUFACTURER. 

1. Steel is a compound of iron and car¬ 
bon ; and, as there are several methods by 
which the combination is produced, there 
are likewise several kinds of steel. The 
best steel is said to be made of Swedish or 
Russian bar iron. 

2. The most common method of forming 
steel is by the process of cementation. 
The operation is performed in a conical 
furnace, in which are two large cases or 
troughs, made of fire Drick, or good fire 
stone ; and beneath these is a long grate. 
On the bottom of the cases is placed a 
layer of charcoal dust; and over this a 
layer of bar iron. Alternate strata of 
these materials are continued to a con- 

Y 2 





















282 


THE STEEL MANUFACTURER. 


siderable height, ten or twelve tons of iron 
being put in at once. 

3. The whole is covered with clay or 
sand, to exclude the air, and flues are car¬ 
ried through the pile from the furnace be¬ 
low, so as to heat the contents equally and 
completely. The fire is kindled in the 
grate, and continued for eight or ten days, 
during which time, the troughs, with their 
contents, are kept red hot. The progress of 
the cementation is discovered by drawing 
a lest bar from an aperture in the side. 

4. When the conversion of the iron into 
steel appears to be complete, the fire is ex¬ 
tinguished; and after having been suffered 
to cool for six or eight days, it is removed. 
Iron combined with charcoal in this man¬ 
ner, is denominated blistered steel , from 
the blisters which appear on its surface, 
and in this state, it is much used for com¬ 
mon purposes. 

5. To render this kind of steel more 
perfect, the bars are heated to redness, 
and then drawn out into bars of much 
smaller dimensions, by means of a ham¬ 
mer moved by water or steam power. 
This instrument is called a tilting ham¬ 
mer ; on which account, the bars formed 
by it are called tilted steel. When the 
bars have been exposed to heat, and after¬ 
wards doubled, drawn out, and welded, the 
product is called shear steel. 

6. But steel of cementation, however 
carefully made, is never quite equable in 
its texture; steel possessing this latter 
quality is made, by fusing bars of blistered 
steel, in a crucible placed in a wind fur¬ 
nace. When the fusion has been com¬ 
pleted, the liquid metal is cast into small 
bars or ingots, which are known in com¬ 
merce by the name of cast steel. Cast 
steel is harder, more elastic, closer in tex¬ 
ture, and capable of receiving a higher 
polish than common steel. 


7. Steel is also made directly from cast 
iron, or at once from the ore. This kind 
is called natural or German steel, and is 
much inferior to that obtained by cementa¬ 
tion. The best steel, produced directly 
from the ore, comes from Germany, and is 
made in Stiria. It is usually imported in 
barrels, or in chests about three feet long. 

8. Steel is sometimes alloyed with other 
metals. A celebrated Indian steel, called 
wootz , is supposed to be carbonated iron, 
combined with small quantities of silicium 
and aluminum. Steel alloyed with a very 
small proportion of silver, is superior to 
wootz, or to the best cast steel; some 
other metr.ls are also used with advantage 
in the same application. 

9. Steel was discovered at a very early 
period of the world ; for aught we know, 
long before the flood. Pliny informs us, 
that, in his time, the best steel came from 
China, and that the next best came from 
Parthia. A manufacture of steel existed 
in Sweden as early as 1340 of the Chris¬ 
tian era, but it is generally thought that 
the process of converting iron into steel 
by cementation, originated in England at a 
later period. The method of making cast 
rteel was invented at Sheffield, in the lat¬ 
ter country, in 1750, and for a long time it 
was kept secret. 

10. It has been but a few years since 
this manufacture was commenced in the 
United States. At present, we have four¬ 
teen steel furnaces, viz: at Boston, one; 
New-York,three; Troy,one; New-Jersey, 
two; Philadelphia, three; York Co. Pa, 
one ; Baltimore, one; and Pittsburg, two. 
These furnaces together are said to be ca¬ 
pable of yielding more than 1600 tons of 
steel in a year. The American steel is 
employed in the fabrication of agricultu¬ 
ral utensils, and it has entirely excluded 
the common English blistered steel. 










THE BLACKSMITH, 


THE BLACKSMITH. 

1. The blacksmith operates in wrought 
iron and steel, and from these materials, 
he fabricates a great variety of articles, 
essential to domestic convenience, and to 
the arts generally. 

2. This business is one of those trades 
essential in the rudest state of society. 
Even the American Indians are so sensi¬ 
ble of its importance, that they cause to 
be inserted in the treaties which they 
make with the United States, an article 
stipulating for a blacksmith to be settled 
among them, and for a supply of iron. 

3. The utility of this trade will be fur¬ 
ther manifest by the consideration, that 
almost every other business is carried on 
by its aid. The agriculturist is dependent 
on it for farming utensils, and mechanics 


AND THE NAILER. 


and artists of every description, for the 
tools with which they operate: in short, 
we can scarcely fix upon a single utensil, 
vehicle, or instrument, which does not 
owe its origin, either directly or indirect¬ 
ly, to the blacksmith. 

4. This business being thus extensive 
in its application, it cannot be presumed 
that any one person can be capable of ex¬ 
ecuting every species of work. This, how¬ 
ever, is not necessary ; since the demand 
for particular articles is frequently so great, 
that the whole attention may be directed 
to the multiplication of individuals of the 
same kind. Some smiths make only an¬ 
chors, axes, scythes, hoes, or shovels. 

5. In such cases, the workmen acquire 
great skill and expedition in the manufac¬ 
ture A tilt hammer is often used in forg- 




































































284 


THE BLACKSMITH. 


ing large masses of iron, and even in 
making utensils as small as the hoe, the 
axe, and the sword; but the hammer which 
may be employed bears a due proportion in 
its weight to the mass of iron to be wrought. 
Jn all cases in which a tilt hammer is used, 
the bellows from which the blast proceeds 
is moved by water or steam power. 

6. In the shop represented at the head 
of this article, sledges and hammers are 
used as forging instruments, and these are 
wielded by the workmen themselves. The 
head workman has hold of a piece of iron 
with a pair of tongs, and he, with a ham¬ 
mer, and two others, with each a sledge, 
are forging it upon an anvil. The two 
men are guided in their disposition of the 
strokes chiefly by the hammer of the ma&- 
ter-work man. 

7. In ordinary blacksmith shops, two 
persons commonly work at one forge; one 
of whom takes the lead in the ope-ations, 
and the other works the bellows and uses 
the sledge. From the part which the lat¬ 
ter takes in the labour, he is called the 
blower and striker. A man or youth, who 
understands but little of the business, can, 
in many cases, act in this capacity tolera¬ 
bly well. 

8. The iron is rendered malleable by 
heating it with charcoal or with stone coal, 
which is ignited intensely by means of a 
blast from a bellows. The iron is heated 
more or less, according to the particular 
object of the workman. When he wishes 
to reduce it into form, he raises it to a 
white heat. The welding heat is less in¬ 
tense, and is used when two pieces are to 
be united by welding. At a red heat, and 
at lower temperatures, the iron is render¬ 
ed more compact in its internal texture, 
and more smooth upon its surface. 

9. The joint action of the heat and air, 
while the temperature is being raised, 


tends to produce a rapid oxidation of the 
surface. This result is measurably pre¬ 
vented by immersing the iron in sand and 
common salt, which, uniting, form a vitre¬ 
ous coating for its protection. This coating 
is no inconvenience in the forging, as its 
fluidity causes it to escape immediately 
under the action of the hammer. 

10. Steel is combined with iron in the 
manufacture of cutting instruments, and 
other implements, as well as articles re¬ 
quiring, at certain parts, a great degree 
of hardness. This substance possesses the 
remarkable property of changing its degree 
of hardness by the influence of certain de¬ 
grees of temperature. No other substance 
is known to possess this property; but it is 
the peculiar treatment which it receives 
from the workman that renders it available. 

11. If steel is heated to redness, and 
suddenly plunged into cold water, it is ren¬ 
dered extremely hard, but, at the same 
time, too brittle for use. On the other 
hand, if it is suffered to cool gradually, it 
becomes too soft and ductile. The erreat 
object of the operator is to give to the 
steel a quality equally distant from brittle 
ness and ductility. The treatment by whicl 
this is effected is called tempering , which 
will be more particularly treated in the 
article on the cutler, whose employment 
is a refined branch of this business. 


THE NAILER. 

1. Nail-making constitutes an exten¬ 
sive branch of the iron business; as vast 
quantities of nails are annually required 
by all civilized communities. They are 
divided into two classes, the names of 
which indicate the particular manner in 
which they are manufactured ; viz.— 
wrought nails and cut nails. 

2. The former are usually forged on the 














THE NAILER. 


28: 


~ vil, and when a finished head is re- 
q rea, as is commonly the case, it is ham¬ 
mered o.. the larger end, after it has been 
inerted into a hole of an instrument form¬ 
ed for the purpose. Workmen by practice 
acquire surpi sing dispatch in this busi¬ 
ness; and this circumstance has prevented 
the general introduction of the machines 
which have been invented for making nails 
of this description. Wrought nails can be 
easily disting”ished from cut nails, by the 
indentations cf the hammer which have 
been .eft upon them. 

3. In making cut nails, the iron is first 
brought into bars between grooved rollers. 
The size of the bars is varied in con¬ 
formity with that of the proposed nails. 
These bars are again heated, and passed 
between smooth rollers, which soon spread 
them into thin strips of suitable width and 
thickness. These strips, having been cut 
into pieces two or three feet in length, are 
heated to a red heat in a furnace, to be 
immediately converted into nails, when 
designed for those of a large size. For 
small nails, the iron does not require heat¬ 
ing. 

4. The end of the plate is presented to 
the machine, by a workman who turns the 
material over, first one way, and then the 
other, for every nail. The machine has a 
rapid reciprocac ng motion, and cuts off, 
at every stroke, a wedgelike piece of iron 
constituting a nail witho'' head. This 
is immediately caught near the head, and 
compressed betweer gripes; and at the 
same time, a force is applied to a die at 
the end, which spreads the iron sufficient¬ 
ly to form the head. From one to two 
hundred can be thus formed in a minute. 
This fact accounts for the low rate at 
which cut nails are now sold, which, on 


an average, is not more than two cents 
per pound above that of bar iron. 

5. On account of the greater expense 
of manufacturing wrought nails, they are 
sold much higher. It is said that nine- 
tenths of all the nails of this kind, used in 
the United States, are imported from Eu¬ 
rope. We thus depend upon foreign coun¬ 
tries for these and many other articles, be¬ 
cause they can be imported cheaper than 
we can make them; and this circumstance 
arises chiefly from the difference in the 
price of labour. 

6. The first machine for making cut 
nails was invented in Massachusetts about 
thirty years ago, by a Mr. Odion, and soon 
afterwards another was contrived, by a 
Mr. Reed, of the same state. Other ma¬ 
chines, for the same purpose, have like¬ 
wise been constructed by different persons, 
but those by Odion and Reed are most 
commonly used. Before these machines 
were introduced, the strips of iron just de¬ 
scribed were cut into wedgelike pieces by 
an instrument which acted on the princi¬ 
ple of the shears; and these were after¬ 
wards headed, one by one, with a hammer 
in a vice. The fact, that the manufacture 
of this kind of nails originated in our coun¬ 
try, is worthy of recollection. 

7. This manufacture includes also, that 
of tacks and spikes; but since, in the pro¬ 
duction of these, the same general me¬ 
thods are pursued, they need no particular 
notice. The different sizes of tacks are 
distinguished by a method which indicates 
the number per ounce; as two, three, or 
four hundred per ounce. Spikes are de¬ 
signated by their length in inches, and 
nails by the terms, two-penny, three-pen¬ 
ny, four-penny, ten-penny, and so on up to 
sixty-penny. 













THE CUTLER. 


1. Under the head of cutlery, is com¬ 
prehended a great variety of instruments 
designed for cutting and penetration, and ' 
the business of fabricating them is divided | 
into a great number of branches. Some j 
manufacture nothing but axes; others; 
make plane-irons and chisels; augers; 
saws; or carvers’ tools. Others again, 
make smaller instruments, such as table- 
knives, forks, pen-knives, scissors, and ra¬ 
zors. There are also cutlers who manu¬ 
facture nothing but surgical instruments. 

2. The coarser kinds of cutlery are made 
of blistered steel welded to iron. Tools of 
a better quality are made of shear steel, 
while the sharpest and most delicate in¬ 
struments are formed of cast steel. The 
se c al processes constituting this business 
may be comprised in forging, tempering, 


and polishing; and these are performed in 
the order in which they are here men¬ 
tioned. 

3. The general method of forging iron 
and steel, in every branch of this business, 
is the same with that used in the common 
blacksmith’s shop, for more ordinary pur¬ 
poses. The process, however, is somewhat 
varied, to suit the particular form of the 
object to be fashioned: for example; the 
blades and some other parts ol the scissors 
are formed by hammering the steel upon 
indented surfaces called bosses. The bows, 
which receive the finger and thumb, are 
made by first punching a hole in the metal, 
and then enlarging it by the aid of a too. 
called a beak-iron. 

4. The steel, after having been forgeu, 
is soft, like iron, and to give it the requi- 













































THE CUTLER. 


287 


site degree of strength under the uses to 
which the tools or instruments are to be 
exposed, it is hardened. The process by 
which this is effected is called tempering , 
and the degree of hardness or strength to 
which the steel is brought is called its 
temper , which is required to be higher or 
lower according to the use which is to be 
made of the particular instrument. 

5. In giving to the different kinds of in¬ 
struments the requisite temper, they are 
first heated to redness, and then plunged 
into cold water. This, however, raises the 
temper too high, and, if left in this condi¬ 
tion, they would be too brittle for use. To 
bring them to a proper state, they are heat¬ 
ed to a less degree of temperature, and 
again plunged into cold water. The de¬ 
gree to which they are heated, the second 
time, is varied according to the hardness 
required. That this particular point may 
be perfectly understood, a few examples 
will be given. 

6. Lancets are raised to 430 degrees 
Fahrenheit. The temperature is indicated 
by a pale colour, slightly inclined to yel¬ 
low. At 450 degrees, a pale straw-colour 
appears, which is found suitable for the 
best razors and surgical instruments. At 
470 degrees, a full yellow is produced, 
which is suitable for pen-knives, common 
razors, &c. At 490, a brown colour ap¬ 
pears, which is the indication of a temper 
proper for shears, scissors, garden hoes, and 
chisels intended for cutting cold iron. 

7. At 510 degrees, the brown becomes 
dappled with purple spots, which shows 
the proper heat for tempering axes, com¬ 
mon chisels, plane-irons, &c. At 530 de¬ 
grees, a purple colour is established, and 
this temperature is proper for table-knives 
and large shears. At 550 degrees, a bright 
blue appears, which is proper for swords 
and watch springs. At 560 degrees, the | 


1 -- — ■ --- 

colour is full blue, and this is used for fine 
sa .vs, augers, &c. At 600 degrees, e dark 
blue tip* \t to black settles upon the 

metal, i? s produces the softest of all 
Lie grades of temper, which is used only 
for the larger klntff ot sa x, s. 

8. Other methods of determining the 
degree of temperature at which the differ¬ 
ent kinds of cutlery are to be immersed, a 
second time, in cold water, are also prac¬ 
tised. By one method, the pieces of steel 
are covered with tallow or oil, or put into 
a vessel containing one of these substances, 
and heated over a moderate fire. The ap¬ 
pearance of the smoke indicates the de¬ 
gree of heat to which it may have been 
raised. A more accurate method is found 
in the employment of a fluid medium, the 
temperature of which can be regulated by 
a thermometer. Thus oil, which boils at 
600 degrees, may be employed for this pur¬ 
pose, at any degree of heat which is below 
that number. 

9. The grinding of cutlery is effected 
on cylindrical stones of various kinds, 
among which freestone is the most com¬ 
mon. These are made to revolve with 
prodigious velocity, by means of machine¬ 
ry. The operation is therefore quickly per¬ 
formed. The polishing is commonly ef¬ 
fected by using, first, a wheel of wood ; 
then, one of pewter; and, lastly, one co¬ 
vered with buff leather sprinkled with an 
impure oxide of iron, called colcothar or 
crocus. The edges are set with either 
hones or whetstones, or with both, accord¬ 
ing to the degree keenness required. 

10. Almost every description of cutlery 
requires a handle of some sort; but the 
nature of the materials, as well as the 
form and nr.jde of application, will be 
readily understood by a littlj attention to 
the various ariicles of this kind wnich 
daily fall in our way. 












288 


THE CUTLER. 


11. A process has been invented, by 
which edge tools, nails, &c., made of cast 
iron, may be converted into good sRel. It 
consists in stratifying the articles *>’ith the 
oxide of iron, in a metallic cynnaer, and 
then submitting the whole to a regular 
heat, in a furnace built for the purpose. 
This kind of cutlery, however, v.’ill no* 
bear a very fine edge. 

12. The sword and the knife were pro¬ 
bably the first instruments fabricated from 
iron, and they still continue to be leading 
subjects of demand, in all parts of the 
world. The most celebrated swords of 
antiquity were made at Damascus, in Sy¬ 
ria. These weapons never broke in the 
hardest conflicts, and were capable of cut¬ 
ting through steel armour without sustain¬ 
ing injury. 

13. The fork, as applied in eating, is 
an invention comparatively modern. It 
appears to have had its origin in Italy, pro¬ 
bably in the fourteenth century; but it was 
not introduced infc-i Englard, until the 
reign of James the < : .rs n the first quar¬ 
ter of the seventeen .. its use was, at 
first, the subject of much ridicule and op¬ 
position. 

14. Before the introduction of the fork, 
a piece of paper, or something in place of 
it, was commonly wrapped round some 
convenient projection of the piece to be 
carved ; and, at this place, the operator 
placed one hand, while he used the knife 
with the other. The carver cut the mass 
of meat into slices or suitable portions, and 
laid them upon the large slices of bread 
which had been piled up near the platter, 
or carving dish, and which, after having 
been thus served, were handed about the 
table, as we now distribute the plates. 

15. The knives used at table were point¬ 


ed, that the food might be taken upon 
them, as upon a fork; and knives of the 
same shape are still common on the conti¬ 
nent of Europe Round-topped knives 
were not adopts in Paris, until after the 
banishment of Napoleon Bonaparte to 
Elba, in 1815, when every thing English 
became f shicnable in that city. 

16. In /Vane**, before the revolution of 
1789, it was c istomary for every gentle¬ 
man, when inv'tea L/ dinner, to send his 
knife and Icrk be? re him, Ly a servant; 
or, if he had no seevint. he carried them 
himself, in his breeches pocket. A few of 
the ancient regime still continue the old 
custom. The peasantry of the Tyrol, and 
of some parts o Germany and Switzer¬ 
land, generally carry about them a case, 
containing a knife and fork, and a spoon. 

17. The use of the fork, for a long time, 
was considered so great a luxury, that the 
members of many of the monastic orders 
were forbidden to indulge in it. The 
•Turks and Asiatics use no forks, even to 
this day. The Chinese employ, instead 
of this instrument, two small sticks, which 
they hold in the same hand, between dif¬ 
ferent fingers. 

18. The manufacture of cutlery is car¬ 
ried on most extensively in England, at 
Birmingham, Sheffield, Walsall, Wolver¬ 
hampton and London. London cutlery has 
the reputation of being the best, and this 
circumstance induces the dealers in that 
city, to affix the London mark to articles 
made at other places. In the United 
States, there are many establishments for 
the fabrication of the coarser kin Is of cut¬ 
lery, such as axes, plane-irons, saws, hoes, 
scythes, &c., but for the finer descriptions 
of cutting instruments, we arc chiefly de¬ 
pendent on Europe. 








1. It is the business of the gun-smith to 
manufacture fire-arms of the smaller sorts; 
such as muskets, fowling-pieces, rifles, and 
pistols. 

2. The principal parts of the instru¬ 

ments fabricated by this artificer, are the 
barrel, the stock, and the lock. In per¬ 
forming the operations connected with this 
business, great attention is paid to the di¬ 
vision of labour, especially in large estab¬ 
lishments, such as those belonging to the 
United States, at Springfield and Harper’s 
Ferry: for example; one set of workmen 
forge the barrels, ramrods, or some part 
of the lock; others reduce some part of the 
forged material to the exact form required, 
by means of files; and again another class 
of operators perform some part of the work 
relating to the stock. U 

37 


3. The barrel is formed by forging a bar 
of iron into a flat piece, of proper length 
and thickness; and then, by turning the 
plate round a cylindrical rod of tempered 
steel, called a mandril , the diameter of 
which is considerably less than the intend¬ 
ed bore of the barrel. The edges of the 
plate are made to overlap each other about 
half an inch, and are welded together by 
heating the tube in lengths of two or three 
inches at a time, and by hammering them 
with very brisk, but moderate strokes, upon 
an anvil which has a number of semicir¬ 
cular furrows upon it. 

4. In constructing barrels of better work¬ 
manship, the iron is forged in smaller 
pieces, eight or nine inches long, and 
welded together laterally, as well as length¬ 
wise. The barrel is now finished in the 

Z 











































































































































































290 


THE GUN-SMITH. 


usual way; or it is first made to undergo the 
additional operation of twisting ,—a process 
employed upon those intended to be of su¬ 
perior quality. The operation is performed 
by heating small portions of it at a time, 
and twisting them successively, while one 
end is held fast. 

5. The barrel is next bored with seve¬ 
ral bits, each a little larger than the pre¬ 
ceding one. The last bit is precisely the 
size of the intended calibre. After the 
barrel has been polished, and the breech 
closed with a screw, its strength and sound¬ 
ness are tested by means of a ball of the 
proper size, and a charge of powder equal 
in weight to the ball. Pistol-barrels, which 
are to go in pairs, are forged in one piece, 
which is cut asunder, after it has been 
bored. 

6. Barrels for rifles are much thicker 
than those for other small-arms: and, in 
addition to the boring in common barrels, 
they are furrowed with a number of grooves 
or rifles , which extend from one end of the 
cavity to the other, either in a straight or 
spiral direction. These rifles are supposed 
to prevent the rolling of the ball in its 
passage out, and to direct it more uner¬ 
ringly to the object of aim. 

7. The stocks are uniformly manufac¬ 
tured from the wood of the walnut-tree. 
These are first dressed in a rough manner, 
usually in the country. After the wood 
has been properly seasoned, they are fin¬ 
ished by workmen, who commonly confine 
their attention to this particular branch of 
the business. In each of the United States 
armories, is employed a machine with which 
the stocks are turned; and also one, with 
which the place for the lock is made. 

8. The several pieces composing the 
lock are forged on anvils, some of which 
aave indented surfaces, the more readily 

give the proposed form. They are re¬ 


duced somewhat with the file, and polished 
with substances usually employed for such 
purposes. The several pieces of the lock 
having been put together, it is fastened to 
the stock with screws. Other particulars 
in regard to the manufacture of small-arms 
will be readily suggested by a careful in¬ 
spection of the different kinds, which are 
frequently met with. 

9. The period at which, and the coun¬ 
try where, gunpowder and fire-arms were 
first invented, cannot be certainly deter¬ 
mined. Some attribute their invention to 
the Chinese; and, in confirmation of this 
opinion, assert that there are now cannon 
in China, which were made in the eighti¬ 
eth year of the Christian era. On this 
supposition, their use was gradually ex¬ 
tended to the west, until they were finally 
adopted in Europe in the fourteenth cen¬ 
tury. 

10. Others, however, attribute the inven¬ 
tion of gunpowder to Berthold Schwartz, a 
monk, who lived at Mentz, between the 
years 1290 and 1320. It is said, that in 
some of his alchymistic experiments, he 
put some saltpetre, sulphur, and charcoal, 
into a mortar, and having accidentally 
dropped into it a spark of fire, the contents 
exploded, and threw the pestle into the 
air. This circumstance suggested to his 
mind the employment of the mixture for 
throwing projectiles. Some traditions, how¬ 
ever, attribute the invention to Constantine 
Antlitz, of Cologne. 

11. The fire-arms first used in Europe 
were cannon, and these were originally 
made of wood, wrapped in numerous folds 
of linen, and well secured with iron hoops. 
They were conical in shape, being widest 
at the muzzle; but this form was soon 
changed for the cylindrical. At length 
they were made of bars of iron, firmly 
bound together with hoops of the same 







THE GUN-SMITH. 


291 


metal. In the second half of the fourteenth 
century, a composition of copper and tin, 
which was brought to form by casting in 
sand, came into use. 

12. Cannon were formerly dignified with 
great names. Charles V. of Spain had 
twelve, which he called after the twelve 
apostles. One at Bois-le-Duc is called the 
devil; a sixty-pounder, at Dover Castle, is 
called Queen Elizabeth's pocket-pistol; 
an eighty-pounder, at Berlin, is called the 
thunderer; two sixty-pounders, at Bremen, 
the messengers of bad neios. But can¬ 
non are, at present, denominated from the 
weight of the balls which they carry; as 
six-pounders, eight-pounders, &c. 

13. Fire-arms of a portable size were 
invented about the beginning of the six¬ 
teenth century. The musket was the first 
of this class of instruments that appeared; 
and the Spanish nation the first that adopt¬ 
ed its use as a military weapon. It was 
originally very heavy, and could not be 
well supported in a horizontal position 
without a rest. The soldiers, on their 
march, carried only the rest and ammuni¬ 
tion, while each was followed by a youth 
who bore the musket. 

14. The powder was not ignited with a 
6park from a flint, but with a match. Af¬ 
terwards, a lighter match-lock musket was 
introduced, which was carried by the sol¬ 
diers themsel ves. The rest, however, main¬ 
tained its ground until about the middle 
of the seventeenth century. The troops 
throughout Europe were furnished with 
fire-locks, such as are now used, a little 


before the beginning of the eighteenth 
century. 

15. The bayonet was invented, about 
the year 1640, at Bayonne; but it was not 
generally introduced until the pike was 
entirely discontinued, about sixty years 
afterwards. It was first carried by the 
side, and was used as a dagger in close 
fight; but, in 1690, the custom of fastening 
it to the muzzle of the fire-lock was com¬ 
menced in France, and the example was 
soon followed throughout Europe. 

16. Gunpowder, on which the use of 
fire-arms depends, is a composition of salt¬ 
petre, sulphur, and charcoal. The propor¬ 
tion of the ingredients is varied considerably 
in different countries, and by different man¬ 
ufacturers in the same country. But good 
gunpowder may be made of seventy-six 
parts of saltpetre, fifteen of charcoal, and 
nine of sulphur. These materials are first 
reduced to a fine powder separately, and 
then formed into a homogeneous mass by 
moistening the mixture with water, and 
pounding it for a considerable time in 
wooden mortars. 

17. After the paste has been suffered to 
dry a little, it is forced through a kind of 
sieve. By this process, it is divided into 
grains, the size of which depends upon that 
of the holes through which they have been 
passed. The powder is then dried in ovens, 
and afterwards put into barrels, which are 
made to revolve on their axis. The fric¬ 
tion produced by this motion destroys the as¬ 
perities of the grains, and renders their sur¬ 
faces smooth, and capable of easy ignition. 












THE VETERINARY SURGEON. 


1. The horse, as well as the other do¬ 
mestic animals, is subject to a great vari¬ 
ety of diseases, which, like those affecting 
the human system, are frequently under 
the control of medicinal remedies; and 
the same general means which are effica¬ 
cious in healing the disorders of our race, 
are equally so in controlling those of the 
inferior part of the animal creation. 

2. The great value of the domestic ani¬ 
mals has rendered them, from the earliest 
periods, the objects of study and attention, 
not only while in health, but also when la¬ 
bouring under disease. For the latter state, 
a peculiar system was early formed, in¬ 
cluding a materia medica , and a general 
mode of treatment considerably different 
from those for human patients. 

3. Of the authors of this system, whe¬ 


ther Greek or Roman, nothing worthy of 
notice has been transmitted to us, beyond 
an occasional citation of names, in the 
works of Columella, a Roman writer, who 
flourished in the reign of Tiberius Caesar, 
and in Vegetius Renatus, who lived two 
centuries afterwards. The former treated 
at large on the general management of do¬ 
mestic animals, and the latter more profess¬ 
edly on the diseases to which they are liable. 

4. Both of these writers treated their 
subject in elegant classical Latin; but 
neither they nor any other ancient author 
whose works have reached us, had any 
professional acquaintance with medicine 
or surgery. Celsus is the only physician 
of those times who is said to have written 
on animal medicine; but this part of his 
works is not extant. 


























































THE VETERINARY SURGEON. 


293 


5. Xenophon is the oldest veterinary 
writer on record; but his treatise is con¬ 
fined to the training- and management of 
the horse for war and the chase. The 
chief merit of the ancient writers on this 
subject consists in the dietetic rules and do¬ 
mestic management which they propose. 
Their medical prescriptions are said to be 
an inconsistent and often discordant jumble 
of many articles, devoid of rational aim, or 
probable efficacy. 

6. On the revival of learning in Europe, 
when the anatomy and physiology of the 
human body had become grand objects of 
research in the Italian schools, veterinary 
anatomy attracted the attention of Ruini 
and others, whose descriptive labours on 
the body of the horse have since served for 
the ground-work and model to all the 
schools in Europe. 

7. The works of the veterinary writers 
of antiquity were eagerly sought and trans¬ 
lated in Italy and France, and the art was 
extensively cultivated, sometimes under 
regular medical professors. Every branch 
of the equine economy was pursued with 
assiduity and success, whether it related 
to harness and trappings, equitation and 
military menage, or the methodical treat¬ 
ment of the hoof, and the invention of va¬ 
rious kinds of iron shoes. Evangelista of 
Milan distinguished himself in the educa¬ 
tion or breaking of the horse; and to him 
is attributed the invention of the martin- 
gale. 

8. The new science having been ex¬ 
tended over a great proportion of the con¬ 
tinent of Europe, could scarcely fail of 
occasional communication with England: 
nevertheless, the medical treatment of 
horses and other domestic animals contin¬ 
ued exclusively in the hands of farriers 
and cow-doctors, until some time in the 
first quarter of the eighteenth century. 


9. At this period, that branch of this art 
which relates to the medical and surgical 
treatment of the horse, attracted the atten¬ 
tion of William Gibson, who had acted in 
the capacity of army surgeon in the wars 
of Queen Anne. He was the first author 
of the regular medical profession, in Eng¬ 
land, who attempted to improve veterinary 
science; and the publication of his work 
forms an era in its annals; since his work 
became, and has continued to the present 
day, the basis of the superior practice of 
the English. 

10. The eighteenth century was abun¬ 
dantly fruitful in veterinary pursuits and 
publications. France took the lead; but a 
zeal for this branch of science pervaded 
Germany and the states north of that part 
of Europe, and colleges were established 
in various countries, with the express view 
of cultivating this branch of the medical 
art. It is said that the French have im¬ 
proved the anatomical and surgical branch¬ 
es of the art, and the English those which 
relate to the application of medicines. 

11. The first veterinary school was in¬ 
stituted at Lyons, in 1762. Another was 
established at Alfort, in 1766. A similar 
institution was opened at Berlin in 1792; 
and in the same year, one at St. Pancras, 
near London. In these colleges, lectures 
are given, and degrees conferred. In the 
diplomas, the graduate is denominated ve 
terinary surgeon. A great number of these 
surgeons have been dispersed in the armies 
of Europe, as well as through the different 
countries, where they have been employed 
in the medical and surgical treatment of 
diseased animals, to the great advantage 
of their owners. 

12. From the preceding account, it is 
evident that the light of science has shone 
conspicuously, in Europe, on the domestic 
animals, in relation to their treatment, both 

Z 2 











294 


THE VETERINARY SURGEON. 


while in health, and when labouring under 
disease. In the United States, we have 
no institution for the cultivation of this 
branch of knowledge. The press, how¬ 
ever, has been prolific in the production of 
works treating on the various branches of 
the veterinary art; and many persons, by 
their aid, have rendered themselves com¬ 
petent to administer to animals in cases of 
disease, in a rational manner. 

13. Nevertheless, the practice of animal 
medicine is confined chiefly to illiterate 
men, who, from their laborious habits, or 
from other causes, have not attained to that 
degree of information on animal diseases, 
and the general effects of medicine, that 
might enable them to prescribe their rem¬ 
edies on scientific principles. But this 
state of things is not peculiar to our coun¬ 
try ; for notwithstanding the laudable ef¬ 
forts of enlightened men in Europe, the 
blacksmiths form a vast majority of the 
horse-surgeons and physicians in every 
part of it; and the medical treatment of 
the other domestic animals is commonly 
intrusted to persons who are still more in¬ 
competent. 

14. The attention of blacksmiths was 
very early turned to the diseases of the 


horse, from the practice of supplying him 
with shoes. The morbid affections of the 
foot were probably the first which attract 
ed their notice; and descanting upon these 
induced the general belief, that they under¬ 
stood every other disease which might 
affect the animal. 

15. These men, as labourers in iron, 
were orginally termed ferrers or ferriers, 
from the Latin word ferrum , iron,—and 
their craft, ferriery. These terms, by a 
usual corruption or improvement in lan¬ 
guage, have been changed to farrier and 
farriery, both of which still remain in gen¬ 
eral use, the former as applied to persons 
who shoe horses and administer to them 
medicines and surgical remedies, and the 
latter to the art itself, by which they are, 
or ought to be, guided. 

16. The appellation of veterinary sur¬ 
geon is applicable to persons who have 
received a diploma from some veterinary 
college, or who have, at least, studied ani¬ 
mal medicine scientifically. There are a 
few such individuals in the United States; 
and the great value of the domestic ani 
mals, and the general increase of know 
ledge, certainly justify the expectation, 
that their number will increase. 





QUESTIONS 

ON 

THE ARTICLES OF THE PRECEDING PAGES, 

NUMBERED 

ACCORDING TO THE PARAGRAPHS TO WHICH THEY REFER. 


1. What is meant by the word 
Agriculture ? 

2. What is said of the agri¬ 
culture of the antediluvians ? 

3. To what did Noah resort 
for support immediately after the 
deluge ? 

4. Were the husbandmen, for 
several centuries after the flood, 
acquainted with any proper 
mode of restoring exhausted 
soils ? 

5 What people first adopted 
the measure of retaining per¬ 
petual possession of their lands ? 

6. By what means can the 
reader form some idea of the 
extent to which this art was cul¬ 
tivated, in ancient times ? 

7. Was agriculture neglected 
by the learned men of anti¬ 
quity? 

8. Until what period did agri¬ 
culture maintain a respectable 
standing in the Roman empire ? 

9. When, and -where, did 
husbandry begin to be practised, 
with considerable success, in 
England ? Who wrote the first 
book on husbandry, in the Eng¬ 
lish language ? 

10. When, and by whom, were 
improvements made on the the¬ 
ory of this author ? 

11. When did agriculture 
again receive a new impulse? 
When, and at whose suggestion, 
was the Board of Agriculture 
established ? 

12. Where have agricultural 
societies been formed, and pe¬ 
riodical journals published, in 
imitation of those in Great Bri¬ 
tain ? 

13. In what do the'great mo¬ 
dern improvements in husband¬ 
ry consist? 

14. To what science are w r e 
indebted, for many of the im- 


THE AGRICULTURIST. 


proved processes which relate 
to the amelioration of the soil? 

15. What are the cultivators 
of the soil called, in the United 
States ? 

16. What is the general pro¬ 
cess of cultivating most of the 
productions which have been 
mentioned ? 

17. How are corn, beans, pota¬ 
toes, and pumpkins cultivated ? 

18. How are the crops, men¬ 
tioned in this paragraph, se¬ 
cured ? 

19. What course is pursued, 
in securing corn? 

20. How do the blacks pro¬ 
ceed, at their husking matches ? 

21. In what country did In¬ 
dian corn and potatoes origin¬ 
ate ? 

22. For what are the grasses 
valuable to man ? 

23. Where was rice first cul¬ 
tivated ? 

24. Where is rice now culti¬ 
vated ? How many crops do the 
Chinese obtain in a year, from 
the same ground ? 

25. How do they proceed, in 
raising a crop ? 

26. How is the crop cut? and 
how is the rice threshed and 
cleared ? 

27. When was rice introduced 
into the Carolinas ? How is it 
there sown and managed ? 

28. Where is cotton cultivated? 
How many kinds of cotton are 
there produced in the Southern 
States ? 

29. How are the plants pro¬ 
pagated, and managed while 
growing ? 

30. When is the cotton fit to 
be gathered ? 

31. 32. How are the seeds se¬ 
parated from the cotton ? De¬ 
scribe the roller-gin, and saw-gin. 


33,34. Before the invention of 
the saw-gin, how were the seeds 
separated from the upland cot¬ 
tons? Who invented the saw- 
gin? 

35. Where was the sugar-cane 
first cultivated ? 

36. When was the cane intro¬ 
duced into Arabia Felix? Who 
introduced it into America, and 
the W r est Indies? Where is it 
now cultivated ? 

37. When was sugar known 
only as a medicine, in Europe ? 

38. How is the sugar-cane 
propagated ? 

39. How is the juice of the 
cane expressed, evaporated, and 
cooled ? How is the syrup se¬ 
parated from the sugar ? 

40. How is this sugar further 
purified ? and where ? 

41. How is loaf-sugar manu¬ 
factured ? 

42. What is molasses ? From 
what is rum distilled? 

43. From what is sugar manu¬ 
factured in the Northern parts 
of the United States, and the 
Canadas? 

44. 45. How is the sugar ob¬ 
tained from the sap? and how is 
it clarified ? 

46. What is said of lands in 
their native state? 

47. How is land cleared by 
the Pennsylvanians? 

48,49. How is land cleared by 
settlers from New-England? 

50. What is done with the 
ashes obtained in this mode of 
clearing land ? 

51,52 What is the process of 
making pot-ash ? and also of 
pearl-a B h ? 

53,54. Do the settlers usually 
complete the whole process ? Is 
the trade in ashes profitable to 
the settlers ? 








296 


QUESTIONS ON THE ARTICLES 


1. From what did the Creator 
form man? and in what situation 
did he place him ? 

2. What may be supposed to 
have been the state of this art 
before the flood? 

3. What statement in scrip¬ 
ture may be regarded as proof 
of the early attention to garden¬ 
ing after the flood ? 

4. What is one of the first in¬ 
dications of advancement to¬ 
wards civilization among savage 
nations ? 

5. At what stage of refine*- 
ment does ornamental gardening 
begin to be attended to ? 

6. By whom was ornamental 


THE HORTICULTURIST 


gardening practised from the 
eighth to the thirteenth century ? 

7. When was gardening intro¬ 
duced into England as a source 
of profit ? 

8. When did horticulture at¬ 
tract the attention of the first 
characters in England ? 

9. What is said of the ad¬ 
vancement and present preva¬ 
lence of English gardening? 

10. What is said of Horticul¬ 
tural Societies ? 

11. What is said of authors 
who have written upon practical 

j gardening? 

12. What is said of periodical 
publications upon horticulture ? | 


13. Can we draw a distinct 
line between horticulture and 
agriculture ? 

14. Name the divisions of a 
complete garden. 

15. What is said of professed 
gardeners in Europe ? 

16. What is said of gardening 
in the United States ? 

17. What is said of the hot¬ 
house, and the green-house ? 

18. What vegetables are com¬ 
monly cultivated in gardens for 
the table ? 

19. At what particular ob¬ 
jects does the scientific horticul- 
turalist aim in laying off his 
garden ? 


THE MILLER. 


1. In what does the business 
of the miller consist ? 

2. What method of reducing 
grain to flour is the most simple ? 

3. What is said of the hand- 
mill? 

4. In w hat particular does the 
modern corn or flour mill differ 
from the ancient hand-mill ? 

5. What is said of the surfaces 

of the stones ? v 

6. What is said of the form of 
the two stones ? 


7. Explain the machinery of 
the common mill, as exhibited by 
the picture in this paragraph. 

8. In what manner is the com¬ 
minuted grain bolted ? 

9. Of what materials are mill¬ 
stones made ? 

10. In what manner is the 
miller paid for his services in a 
grist mill ? 

11. What is meant by a mer¬ 
chant-mill ? 

12. What agent is most com¬ 


monly employed to move heavy 
machinery ? and when w as the 
windmill invented ? 

13. Where are our most cele¬ 
brated flour-mills ? 

14. What is hominy ? and m 
what manner is it prepared ? 

15. Describe the hominy mor¬ 
tar. 

16. What kind of com is com¬ 
monly chosen for hominy ? 

17. IIow r is hominy prepareu 
for the table ? 


THE BAKER. 


1. In what does the business 
of the baker consist ? 

2. When did man begin to use 
farinaceous grains, as his princi¬ 
pal means of support ? 

3. In what manner was the 
method of making fermented 
bread discovered ? 

4. In what manner was bread 
baked before the invention of 
the oven ? 

5. From what material were 
the primitive ovens formed ? 

6. Why is it that the animal 
economy requires dry food ? 


7. What kinds of grain are ! 
most commonly employed in 
making bread ? 

8. What are the component 
parts of flour ? 

9. How many general me¬ 
thods of making bread are there ? 

10. Explain the theory of mak¬ 
ing light bread. 

11. What substances are used 
as substitutes for yeast and lea¬ 
ven ? 

12. Is the art of making bread 
universally practised ? 

13. 14. When did the baking 


of bread begin to be practised 
as a regular profession ? What 
is said of the bakers of Rome ? 

15. In what manner is the 
price of bread regulated in many 
of the cities of Europe ? 

16. What is said of the laws 
regarding this subject in the 
United States ? 

17. What is said of the labo 
rious nature of this business ? 

18. Describe the daily rou 
tine of the baker’s labours. 

19. What is said of the differ¬ 
ent branches of this business ? 


-I 























OF THE PRECEDING PAGES. 


297 


THE CONFECTIONER. 


1. In what does the business 
the confectioner consist ? 

3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9,10. What are 
hquid and dry confects, jellies, 


marmalades, conserves, candies, 
sugar-plumbs, ice cream, cakes? 

11. In what other articles does 
the confectioner deal ? 


12. In what manner is soda 
water prepared ? 

13. Of what materials are pies 
and tarts composed ? 


THE BREWER, AND THE, DISTILLER. 


THE BREWER. t 

1. What is meant by the art 
of brewing? What kind of 

rain is usually preferred by the 
rewer ? 

2, 3. By what means is barley 
converted into malt ? 

4, 5. Describe the process of 
mashing. 

6. How many times does the 
same malt require to be 
mashed ? 

7. What is done with the pro¬ 
duct of the mashing-tun ? 

8. By what means is the fer¬ 
mentation effected ? 

9. When does the brewer’s 
cleansing take place ? 

10. What are the denomina¬ 
tions of the products of the 
brewery ? 

11. In what respects do the 


different kinds- of beer differ 
from each other ? 

12. Why are ale and! porter 
called stock liquors ? 

13. Where were fermented 
liquors first used ? 

14. What nation is most cele¬ 
brated for brewing good liquors? 


THE DISTILLER. 

1. From what substances is 
alcohol extracted ? 

2, 3, 4. From what materials 
is whiskey obtained : and what 
is the process by which this 
liquor is produced ? 

5. What is done with the re¬ 
mains of the beer ? 

6. From what are brandy, 
rum, arrack, &c. distilled ? 

7. What is said of the alembic ? 


8. For what purposes are 
crude spirits re-distilled, after 
having been brought to market? 

9. What is said of the decep¬ 
tions practised in this kind of 
merchandise ? 

10. What is said of the ambix? 

11. Were the ancients ac¬ 
quainted with alcohol ? 

12. What opinion with regard 
to the use of alcohol is becoming 
general ? 

13. What is said of the anti¬ 
quity of the use of wine ? 

14. 15. Describe the process 
of making wine. 

16. What deleterious sub¬ 
stances are used to improve the 
sensible qualities of wine ? 

17. What kinds of wine are 
most usually met with in this 
country ? 


THE BUTCHER. 


1, 2. What is said of the sub¬ 
sistence of man on vegetable 
and animal food ? What is said 
of the preference of one to the 
other, in different climates ? 

3. What is said of the Divine 
permission and prohibitions in 
regard to the use of flesh as 
food ? 

4. Where did the doctrine of 
transmigration arise ? in what 


countries did it spread in ancient 
times ? and where is it still en¬ 
tertained ? 

5. What is the leading fea¬ 
ture of this doctrine? and why 
does it lead to abstinence from 
the flesh of animals ? 

6. How are the people in the 
country supplied with meat? 
and how in the villages, large 
towns, and cities ? 


7. From whom do the butch¬ 
ers obtain their animals? 

8. In what manner does the 
butcher proceed in slaughtering 
an ox ? 

9. Where is the meat sold in 
large towns and cities ? 

10. What is said of the em¬ 
ployment of runners ? 

11. What is said of the health 
and corpulency of butchers ? 


THE TOBACCO PLANTER, AND THE TOBACCONIST. 


THE TOBACCO PLANTER. 

1. Of what country is tobacco 
a native production ? What is 
•aid of the several names bv 
which jl has been distinguished? 

38 


2. When was this plant intro¬ 
duced into Europe ? 

3. 4. Detail the circumstances 
which were attendant upon its 
introduction. 


6. What is said of the differ¬ 
ent species of this plant ? 

8. In what manner is a tobac¬ 
co bed made ? 

9 When are the plants tran*- 































29$ 


QUESTIONS ON THE ARTICLES 


fered to the field, and how is 
their cultivation continued ? 

10. What is said of the tobac¬ 
co worms? 

11 In what manner is the 
tobacco secured ? 

12. llow is it prepared for 
market ? 


THE TOBACCONIST. 

1. What is the business of the 
tobacconist ? 


2. How many kinds of snuff 
are there ? 

3. In what manner is snuff 
manufactured ? 

4. In what manner are the 
different kinds of snuff put up 
for sale ? 

5. Of how many principal 
parts are cigars composed ? 

6 Where is the best kind of 
tobacco for cigars cultivated ? 

7. How many cigars can an 
expert hand make in a day ? 


8. Where does the kind of to 
bacco grow, of which chewing 
tobacco is made ? 

9, 10. In what manner is 
chewing tobacco prepared ? 

11. What is said of the use of 
snuff as a dentifrice ? 

12. What is said of the effects 
of tobacco on the constitution ? 

13. What is said of the extent 
of the use of tobacco here ? 

14. In what manner is the use 
of tobacco perpetuated ? 


THE MANUFACTURER OF CLOTH, &c. 


THE MANUFACTURER 
OF CLOTH. 

1. In what manner were men 
clad in the primitive ages? 

2. What fibres of the vegeta¬ 
ble and animal kind are em¬ 
ployed in the manufacture of 
cloth ? 

3. How many principal oper¬ 
ations are comprised in the man¬ 
ufacture of cloth ? 

4. What objects are effected in 
carding? and in what manner is 
the operation performed ? 

5. What is said of machines 
for carding wool in the United 
Stifles ? 

6. What kinds of wool are 
combed? and in what does the 
operation consist? 

7. When, and by whom, was 
the first machine for combing 
wool invented ? 

8. In what does the process of 
spinning consist ? 

9. 10, 11. By whom, and in 
what manner, is the operation 
performed ? 

12. When, and bv whom, was 
the jenny invented ? 

13. When, and by whom, was 
the tmfcr spinning-frame in¬ 
vented ? 

14. By whom, and when, was 
the mule invented ? 

15. In what manner are the 
fine and short wools carded and 
spun in the manufactories? 


16. What is said of spinning 
■worsted ? and what of spinning 
flax, by machinery ? 

17. What is the first step pre¬ 
paratory to weaving ? 

18. After the warp has been 
wound on a cylindrical beam, 
how is it prepared for the recep¬ 
tion of the tilling? 

19. Describe the manner in 
which weaving is performed. 

20. What is said of weaving 
in general ? and what of power 
looms ? 

21. By what means is the ir¬ 
regular nap removed from the 
finest cottons ? 

22. How are stuffs made of 
vegetable fibres whitened ? 

23. How are fine cottons con¬ 
verted into calico? 

24. What is said of worsted 
fabrics ? 

25. To what kind of stuffs is 
the art of fulling applicable ? 

26. Describe the process of 
fulling. 

27. In what manner is the nap 
raised, and cut off to an even 
surface ? 

28. What is said of the manu¬ 
facture of cloth in families ? 

29. 30. Relate the history of 
the woollen manufacture in 

j England. 

31. What is said of the extent 
of the woollen manufacture in 
j England ? 


32. What is said of the cotton 
and woollen manufacture in the 
United States ? 


THE SILK WORM. 

1. By what insect is silk pro¬ 
duced \ From what is the silk¬ 
worm produced ? and what are 
its several transformations ? 

2. In what manner are the 
fibres of the cocoon wound upon 
a reel? 

3. What is done with the raw 
silk by the manufacturers ? 

4. What is said of the origin 
of the silk worm ? 

5. When did the Greeks and 
the Romans become acquainted 
■with silk? 

6. What is said of the costli¬ 
ness of silk in ancient times? 

8. Until what period was the 
'Roman empire supplied with 
silk bv the Persians? 

9. Ry whose assistance did 
Justinian obtain some eggs from 
India ? 

10. When, and by whom was 
the rearing of these worms in¬ 
troduced into Sicily ? 

11. By whom, was the silk¬ 
worm introduced into England? 
and how has it succeeded there? 

12. What is said regarding 
the silk-worm, and the silk 
manufacture \n the United 

, States ? 



















OF THE PRECEDING PAGES. 


29 y 


THE DYER, AND THE CALICO PRINTER. 


THE DYER. 

1. Ip what does the art of 
dyeing consist ? 

2. What is the nature of the 
union of the colouring matter 
with the fibres ? 

3. In what manner are the 
several substances to be dyed, 
prepared for the process ? 

4. How are the substances 
used in dyeing divided ? 

5. Name the principal sub¬ 
stances used as mordants. 

6. Name the leading colours. 

7. 8. What substances are used 
in making the dyes for these col¬ 
ours ? and how are the interme¬ 
diate hues produced ? 


10. What is said of the origin 
and antiquity of dyeing ? 

11. What was the favourite 
colour of the ancients ? and how 
was the mode of communicating 
it suggested ? 

12. What is said of the use of 
this colour by the Jews and 
Babylonians ? 

14. What is said of the Tyrian 
purple ? 

16. What colour was second 
in repute among the ancients ? 

17. By what means was the 
art of dyeing lost, and how was 
it recovered, in the western parts 
of Europe ? 

18. What is said of indigo, 


and some other colouring sub¬ 
stances ? 


THE CALICO PRINTER. 

1. What arts are combined 
in calico printing ? 

2, 3, 4, 5,6. Describe the pro¬ 
cess of calico printing. 

7. In what respect does calico 
printing differ from dyeing ? 

8. What is said of this art in 
India ? 

9. When were calicoes first 
brought to Europe ? and when 
was calico printing commenced 
in London ? How many yards 
are supposed to be printed annu¬ 
ally, in the United States ? 


THE HATTER. 


1 In what does the business 
of the hatter consist ? 

2. What is done with the two 
kinds of hair, which cover the 
skins of the fur-clad animals ? 

3. Of what materials are the 
body of hats composed ? 

4. 5, 6, 7, 8, 9. Describe the 
process of felting. 

10. In what manner are the 
hats coloured ? 

11. Describe the operations of 
the finisher. 


15,16, 17,18. What is said of 
the different coverings for the 
head, in different ages and 
countries ? What is said of the 
turban ? 

19. What is said of the ancient 
helmet ? 

20. What is said of the Ro¬ 
mans, the Scotch, and the Eng¬ 
lish? 

21. What is said of the Chi¬ 
nese, in regard to their use of 
caps? 


23. Can the origin of hats be 
ascertained with certainty ? 

24. What tradition have the 
hatters in regard to the origin of 
the art of felting ? 

25. When did hats become 
generally known ? 

26. 27. What is said of the 
adoption of the hat by the 
clergy ? 

28. What opposition was made 
to the introduction of hats in 
England ? 


THE ROPE-MAKER. 


1. What vegetable substances 
are used as materials for ropes ? 

2. Where are the operations 
of rope-making performed ? 

3. In what does the first part 
of the process consist? 

4. 5, 6. Describe the wheel of 
the rope-maker, and the opera¬ 
tions of spinning. 

7. In what does the second 
part of the process consist ? 


8. Of how many strands does 
cordage generally consist ? 

9,10. In what manner are the 
strands formed into small cord¬ 
age, and also into large cordage? 

11. At what stage of the pro¬ 
cess, and in what manner, is tar 
applied to the material ? 

13. What is said of cotton 
yarn and Manilla hemp ? 

14. What is said of the use of 


animal fibre in the manufacture 
of ropes ? 

15. Where is hemp cultivated? 
What is said of flax, as a mate¬ 
rial for cordage, and of hemp, as 
a material for cloth*? 

16. What is caid of the gene¬ 
ral utility of this manufacture ? 

17. Ot what use are old ropes? 

18. What is said of the in 
vention of this art ? 

























300 


QUESTIONS ON THE ARTICLES 


THE TAILOR. 


1. In what does the business 
of the tailor consist ? 

2. In what manner is the mea¬ 
sure of the person taken ? 

3. By what classes of work¬ 
men, are the several parts of the 
labour performed ? 

4. What is said of the employ¬ 
ment of females in this business? 


5. Name the instruments em¬ 
ployed in performing the opera¬ 
tions of the tailor. 

6. What is said of the art of 
the master tailor, and his quali¬ 
fications ? 

7. By whom was given the 
first hint as to the art of cloth¬ 
ing the human body ? 


8. What is said of the primi 
tive method of sewing ? 

9. What is said of the practice 
of this art as a business ? 

10. Describe the Roman toga 

11. What is said of the tunica 
of the Romans? 

12. What is said of the toga 
prcctexta, and toga virilis ? 


THE MILLINER, AND THE LADY’S DRESS-MAKER, 


THE MILLINER. 

1. Name some of the materi¬ 
als used by the milliner. 

2. Describe the process of 
making a hat or bonnet. 

3. YVhat is said of Leghorns ? 

4. Describe the process of 
making hats from straw. 

6. YVhat is said of the anti¬ 
quity of head-dresses ? 


7, 8. What is said of the head¬ 
dresses of the ladies, in the 
eighteenth century ? and what 
of those of the present age ? 


THE LADY’S DRESS MAKER. 

1. What is said of the union 
of this business with that of the 
milliner ? 


2. Why are not the custom 
era of the dress-maker easily 
pleased ? 

3. Why should the dress-ma¬ 
ker understand something of 
anatomy and physiology? 

4. From what country are the 
fashions for ladies’ dresses gene¬ 
rally procured ? 


THE BARBER. 


1. YVhat is the business of the 
barber ? 

2. YVhat is said of the prac¬ 
tice of shaving among the peo¬ 
ple of antiquity ? 

3. YVhen was the practice in¬ 
troduced among the Romans? 

4. Where did the first barbers 
of Rome shave their customers ? 

5. When was this custom ban¬ 
ished from the western empire? 
ami when w r as it again revived? 

6. By whom was the custom 
of shaving introduced into Rus¬ 
sia ? and what circumstances at¬ 
tended its introduction? 

7. In what manner did the 


Spaniards punish the loss of 
honour ? 

8. What anecdote is related 
of the brave John de Castro? 

9. When did whiskers attain 
their highest degree of favour ? 

10. What is said of the whis¬ 
kers of Confucius ? 

11. What are the usual requi¬ 
sites for shaving ? 

12. What is said of dressing 
the hair in ancient times ? 

13. In what manner did the 
adult Romans wear their hair ? 

15. What is said of the anti¬ 
quity of artificial hair ? 

17. At what period were wigs 


first worn by the fashionables of 
Paris ? 

18. What is said of the oppo¬ 
sition of the clergy of England 
to w igs ? 

19. What cause is assigned 
for the easy introduction of the 
wig? 

20. What is said of the fashion 
of wearing wigs ? 

21. 22. YVhat is said of manu 
facturing w'igs and false curls ? 

24, 25. What is said of tim 
performance of surgical opera¬ 
tions by the barbers and bath- 
keepers ? and what of the bar 
ber’s sign ? 


THE TANNER AND THE CURRIER. 


THE TANNER. 

1. In what does the art of 
lanning consist? 

2. What is said respecting 


the antiquity of the art of 
tanning ? 

3. YVhat is said regarding the 
true principle of tanning ? 


4. Bv whom w r as the subject 
throughly investigated ? and 
what was the result of the in- 
. vestigation ? 

























OF THE PRECEDING PAGES. 


301 


5. Describe the skin which 
envelopes the bodies of ani¬ 
mals. 

6. What denomination is given 
to the skins of large animals ? 
and what to those of small ani¬ 
mals ? 

7. 8, 9. Describe the process 
of making sole-leather 


10. What is said of oak bark, 
and other astringent substances 
used for tanning ? 

11, 12. Describe the process 
of tanning calf-skins. 

13. From what sources does 
the tanner obtain his hides and 
skins ? and what is said of hides 
obtained from South America ? 


THE CURRIER. 

1. What is the business of the 
currier ? 

3. Describe the process of 
dressing the call-skin. 

4. What is said of blacking 
horse-hides, and harness leather? 

5. What is said of the divi-. 
sions of the trade of the currier 1 


THE SHOE AND BOOT MAKER. 


1. What is said of the anti¬ 
quity of the shoe ? 

2. Of what materials did the 
people of antiquity manufacture 
their shoes ? 

3. What is said of the cover¬ 
ing used for the feet by the Ro¬ 
mans? 

4. What kind of shoes were 
worn by the senators ? and like¬ 
wise by the women ? 

5. What is said of the boots 
worn in ancient times ? 


6. What is said in regard to 
the fashion of boots and shoes in 
different ages ? 

7. What is said of rights and 
lefts, and crimping ? 

9. What is said of the mate¬ 
rials for boots and shoes, em¬ 
ployed in Europe and America? 

10. What is said of the me¬ 
thod of carrying on this busi¬ 
ness ? 

11. What is said of the differ¬ 
ent sizes of shoes and boots ? 


12. Describe the process of 
making a leather shoe ? 

14. What is said of shoe 
thread, and shoemaker’s wax ? 

16. What is said of wooden 
pegs and brass nails ? 

17. What is said of journey¬ 
men confining their attention to 
particular kinds of work ? 

18. What is meant by being 
on a tramp, or whipping the cat ? 

19. What is said of the finding 
stores, and the leather-cutter ? 


THE SADDLER AND HARNESS MAKER, &c. 


THE SADDLER AND HAR¬ 
NESS MAKER. 

1. What is said of the inven¬ 
tion of the saddle ? 

2 What did the rider use on 
the back of the horse, before the 
saddle came into use ? 

3. What is said of the use of 


the saddle among the Romans? 
and likewise in England ? 

4. What is said of the tree of 
the saddle ? 

5, 6. Describe the process of 
making a common saddle. 

8. Describe the process of 
making bridles and harness. 


THE TRUNK MAKER. 

1. In what does the manufac¬ 
ture of trunks consist? 

2. What is said of the mate¬ 
rials of which the best kind of 
trunks are made? 

3 How long has trunk-making 
been a separate trade ?, 


THE SOAP BOILER, AND THE CANDLE MAKER. 


THE SOAP BOILER. 

1. In what does the business 
of the soap boiler consist ? 

2. In whose works does the 
earliest notice of soap occur ? 

3. W r hat substances were used 
for cleansing the skin and arti¬ 
cles of clothing, before soap was 
invented ? 

4. Name the substances most 
commonly employed in making 
soap. 

5. What is said of soda ? 


6. What is said of barilla and 
kelp ? 

7, 8, 9, 10. Describe the pro¬ 
cess of making common brown 
or yellow soap ? 

11. In what manner is the 
soap cut into bars ? 

12, 13. What is said of the 
adulterations of soap ? and in 
what manner may they be de¬ 
tected ? 

14. What is said of the man¬ 
ufacture of soft soap ? 


15. What is said of Marsailles 
white soap, Castile, and toilet 
soaps ? 

16. What is said of the man¬ 
ufacture of white soap ? 

17. In what manner is the 
mottled appearance of some 
soaps produced ? 


THE CANDLE MAKER. 

1. Define the subject of the 
candle maker’s labours, 

2 A 




























302 


QUESTIONS ON THE ARTICLES 


3. What is said of the mate¬ 
rials of which the wicks of can¬ 
dles are made ? 

4. In what manner are the 
wicks prepared ? 

5. In what manner is tallow 
separated from the membran¬ 
ous part of suet ? 

6. 7. How is tried tallow pre¬ 
pared for application to the 


wicks ? and in what manner is 
the application made ? 

9. Describe the process of 
making mould candles ? 

11. Describe the manner in 
which bees’-wax is whitened, or 
bleached ? 

12. From what animal is sper¬ 
maceti obtained ? 

13. 14, 15. Describe the pro¬ 


cess by which spermaceti is sep 
arated from the oil. 

16. What use is made of 
sperm-oil ? 

17. What is said of the origin 
of the art of making candles ? 

18. What is said of the lamps 
used in ancient times? 

19. What is said of the tallow 
tree ? 


THE COMB-MAKER AND THE BRUSH-MAKER. 


THE COMB-MAKER. 

1. For what purposes is the 
comb used, and of what materi¬ 
als is it made ? 

2. What is said of the inven¬ 
tion of the comb ? 

3. What is said of the differ¬ 
ent species of the turtle ? 

4. What is said of the use of 
the shell of the hawk’s-bill tur¬ 
tle bv the ancients ? 

5. 6. What is'the general size 
of the hawk’s-bill turtle? and on 
what part of the animal does the 
shell grow ? 

7, 8, 9. In making combs from 
the horns of cattle, what is done 
before the teeth are cut ? and 
in what manner are the teeth 
cut ? 


10. What is said of the twin¬ 
ning machine ? 

11. How are the combs pol¬ 
ished ? 

12. 13. What colours are pre¬ 
ferred ? and in what manner 
are they produced ? 

14. How are the combs 
brought to the proper shape? 

16. What is said of welding 
together pieces of shell ? 

17. What is said of carved 
work on combs ? 


THE BRUSH-MAKER. 

1. What is said of the general 
use of brushes ? 

2. From what sources does the 
brush-maker obtain his stocks 
and handles ? 


3. In what does the first part 
of the process of brush-making 

consist ? 

4. Whence are the bristles ob¬ 
tained ? 

5. In what state are the bris¬ 
tles, when they come into the 
hands of the brush-maker? 

6. In what manner are the 
bristles assorted into different 
lengths ? 

7. By what means are the 
bristles fastened into the stocks 
of the brushes ? 

9. For what purposes is a 
veneer applied to the back of 
the brush ? 

10. What part of the manu¬ 
facture does the omamenter per¬ 
form ? 


THE TAVERN-KEEPER. 


1. What are the several de¬ 
nominations applied to houses 
of public entertainment ? 

2. Why is the business of the 
tavern-keeper one of great pub¬ 
lic utility ? 

3. What is said of the susten¬ 
ance and protection of travel¬ 
lers in the early ages ? 

4. What is said of the hospi¬ 
tality of the ancients ? 

5. What precautions were ob¬ 
served by strangers among the 


| Greeks, when one applied for 
lodging ? 

6, 7. What is said of arrange¬ 
ments for mutual accommoda¬ 
tion among the ancients ? 

8. What is said of the hospi¬ 
tality of the middle ages ? 

9. What is said of the hospi¬ 
tality of the nobles of Europe 
in particular ? 

10. What circumstances led 
to the general establishment of 
inns? 


11. At what period were 
inns established by law in Scot¬ 
land ? 

12. What is said of legislative 
enactments as applied to this 
business ? 

13. What is said of the amount 
of travelling, and what of the 
taverns of the present century 

15. What is said of the tavern 
keeper’s license ? 

16, 17. What is said of tem 
perance taverns ? 






















OF THE PRECEDING PAGES 


303 


1. What is said of hunting and 
fishing as the primary occupa¬ 
tions of man ? 

2, 3. What is said of many of 
the branches of Noah’s family ? 

4. What is said of Nimrod ? 

6. What is said of William 
the Conqueror ? and what of the 
game laws of Great Britain ? 

8. What quadrupeds are most 
hunted in Europe ? 

9. What is said of hunting the 
wolf? 

10. In what manner is the lion 
hunted in Africa? 

12- Which are the most for¬ 
midable animals in North Ame¬ 
rica ? 


THE HUNTER. 


13. In what manner do the 
North American Indians hunt 
the bison ? 

14. What is said of the fur- 
clad animals in North America, 
and in the Northern parts of 
Asia? 

15. What is said of a fur com¬ 
pany, formed by Prince Rupert 
and others? and what of the 
North-West Fur Company? 

16. With what commodities 
do these companies supply the 
Indians ? and whatskins do they 
receive in return ? 

17. 18. In what manner is the 
intercourse managed with the 
Indians ? 


19. What is said of the prose¬ 
cution of the fur-trade by a class 
of men in Missouri ? 

20. What is said of the effects 
of the warfare which has been 
carried on against the larger 
quadrupeds,and fur-clad animals 
of North America ? 

21. 22. What is said of the fur 
trade prosecuted on the north¬ 
west coast of America ? 

23. What animals are the 
chief objects of pursuit by the 
hunters of Siberia? What is 
said of the exiles and conquered 
tribes of Siberia ? 

24. Where did the custom of 
wearing furs originate ? 


THE FISHERMAN. 


1. What is said of the use of 
fishes as food in the early ages ? 

2, 3. Where is found the ear¬ 
liest notice of the actual use of 
this class of animals? 

4. At what time had fish be¬ 
come a regular article of diet in 
all parts subject to the Roman 
empire ? 

5. What methods of catching 
fish were pursued in ancient 
times ? 

6. What is said of the great 
variety of fish by Linnaeus ? 

7. What is said of the supply¬ 
ing of towns and cities with 
fresh fish ? 

8. What is said of the differ¬ 
ent varieties of the herring ? 

9,10. What is said of the win¬ 
ter residence of the herring, 
and what of its emigrations ? 

11. How far south do these 
fish proceed ? 

12. What is said of the young 
herring ? 

13. 14, 15. Where, and how 
are these fish caught ? 

16. How is this fish estimated 
in the Southern states ? 

17. By whom was this fish 
brought into notice ? 

18 What is said of the shad ? 

19. What is said of the char¬ 


acter, numbers, and general 
utility of the mackerel ? 

20. In what manner is this 
fish caught ? 

21. Why was this fish much 
esteemed Dy the Romans ? 

22. To what genus of fishes 
does the salmon belong ? and 
where is it found ? 

23. What is said in regard to 
the attachment of the salmon to 
their native river, and to the spot 
for the annual deposit of their 
spawn ? 

25. By what means are sal¬ 
mon caught ? 

26. In what countries are sal¬ 
mon fisheries numerous ? 

27. In what parts of Europe 
is the cod-fish found in the 
greatest abundance ? 

28. Where are the chief 
places of resort for this fish on 
the coasts of America ? 

29. What nations have ac¬ 
quired the right to catch and 
cure fish on the Grand Banks, 
and several other of the British 
possessions. 

30. By what means are the 
fish caught on the Grand Banks ? 

31. In what manner are 
they treated after having been 
caught ? 


32. How are the fish caught 
on the coast of Labrador, and at 
the other places mentioned ? 

33. What kind of seal is the 
most numerous and important ? 

34. On what accounts is this 
animal valuable ? 

36. What is said of a sealing 
voyage to the Antarctic ocean ? 

37, 38. What months of the 
year are best adapted for sealing 
in the Arctic ocean ? In what 
manner are the seals caught? 
and how are the skin and blub¬ 
ber taken off and secured ? 

39. What is said of the differ 
ent species of the whale ? 

40. Where is the mystecetus 
found ? 

41. On what principles are the 
vessels engaged in this fishery 
fitted out ? 

42. When do the whalers 
commence operations in the 
northern latitudes? and between 
what latitudes are the whales 
met with ? 

43. What is said of the prepa 
rations on the fishing stations for 
attacking the whale ? 

45. Describe the conduct of 
the fishermen in pursuit of a 
whale, and likewise that of the 
latter when pursued ? 




















304 


QUESTIONS ON THE ARTICLES 


46, 47. What is the conduct 
of the whale after having been 
struck ? and what of the men 
When fast to the animal 1 

48. What particular position 
is favourable to catching this 
animal? and what unfavour¬ 
able ? 

49. Describe the manner in 
which the blubber is secured. 

50. Describe the blubber. 

51. What is said of the whale 
bone ? 

52. What is done with the 


chunks of blubber before the 
whalers leave the fishing sta¬ 
tion ? 

53. In what manner is the oil 
separated from the fritters or 
fenks ? 

54. Where is the spermaceti 
cachalot found in the greatest 
numbers ? 

55. In what manner do the 
whalers proceed in catching this 
animal ? 

56. How much oil is obtained 
from a large cachalot? 


57. What people first prose 
cuted the whale fishery ? 

56 What led to the discovery 
of ihe principal haunts of me 
whale ? and where were these 
animals found in the greatest 
abundance ? 

59. What is said of the Dutch 
whale-fishery ? 

60. What is said of the Eng¬ 
lish whale-fishery ? 

61. 62. What is said of the 
whale-fishery of the United 
States ? 


THE SHIP-WRIGHT. 


1 What is said of Noah’s 
ark ? 

2. What is said of the progres¬ 
sive steps in navigation among 
the ancient Egyptians ? 

3. What is said of the use of 
the raft by the Phoenicians ? 

4. For what purposes were 
the first vessels constructed by 
the Phoenicians ? and what was 
their shape ? 

5. What is said of the succes¬ 
sive improvements of ships in 
ancient times? What was the 
approved length of a ship of 
war ? and likewise that for mer¬ 
cantile purposes ? 

6. What is said of the mast, 
oars, rowers, and bow ? 

7. What is said of the size of 
vessels in ancient times? 

8. What causes occasioned a 
retrogression, and, in some parts 


of Europe, nearly a total des¬ 
truction of the art of building 
ships ? 

9. What circumstances occa¬ 
sioned a renewal of this art in 
the middle ages ? 

10. To what particular disco¬ 
very is attributed the great 
change in the general construc¬ 
tion of vessels ? 

11. To what nations are we 
indebted for most of the im¬ 
provements in ship-building ? 

12. What is said of the im¬ 
provements made in the United 
States ? 

13. What is the first thing 
done towards building a vessel ? 

14. What kinds of timber are 
used in the United Slates ? 

15. What is said of the crooked 
sticks which form the sides of 
the vessel ? 


16. In what manner do the 
workmen proceeu in fashioning 
the various parts ut a vessel ? 

17. In what manner are the 
several parts of the frame put 
together ? 

18. What is said of applying 
and fastening on the planks ? 

19. What is said of the caulker 
and scraper? 

20. What is said of sheathing 
the bottom of the vessel ? 

21. What are the immediate 
preparations for a launch ? 

22. When every thing has 
been made ready, what is done, 
to cause the vessel to glide into 
the water ? 

23. What is said of a launch 
in ancient times? and what of it 
in modern times ? 

24. What is said of equipping 
the vessel? 


THE MARINER. 


1. In what does the business 
of the mariner consist? and 
what does Horace say of the 
first seaman ? 

2. What is said of the advan¬ 
tages resulting to the world at 
large from this business? 

4. What is said of the sailors 
of antiquity in regard to their 
dependence on the land ? 


5. What is said of the quali* 
fications of a skilful pilot in an¬ 
cient times ? 

6. What is said of the offering 
of sacrifices, and the observance 
of omens before undertaking a 
voyage ? 

7. What is said of the sailors 
who had escaped the multiplied 
dangers of the sea t 


8. What is said of the present 
existence of similar customs in 
regard toship-wrecked mariners? 

9. What is said of the naviga¬ 
tion of the Carthaginians ? 

10. What is said of the decline 
and revival of navigation ? 

11. What was the chief cause 
of the rapid advance in naviga¬ 
tion ? 



















OF THE PRECEDING PAGES. 


305 


f 

12. What is said of the man¬ 
ner of using the magnetic nee¬ 
dle, until the year 1302? 

14. To what nation is naviga¬ 
tion indebted for many valuable 
improvements ? 

15, 16. What is said of the 
discovery of the New World by 
Columbus ? 

18. What instruments are now 
employed in navigation ? 

19, 20. For what purposes are 
the mariner’s compass, the azi¬ 
muth compass, the quadrant, the 


sextant, the chronometer, the 
half-minute glass, the log, and 
the sounding line severally used? 

21. What is meant by naviga¬ 
tion proper ? and what by navi¬ 
gation common ? 

22. What is said of the appli¬ 
cation of steam to the purposes 
of navigation ? 

23. What is the chief obstacle 
to the employment of steam in 
long voyages ? 

24. When, and by whom was 
the expansive force of steam dis¬ 


covered ? Who constructed the 
first working steam engine ? 

25. Who first suggested steam 
navigation? and who rendered 
it completely successful in prac¬ 
tice ? 

27. What is said of Greenwich 
Hospital ? 

28. What is said of the gene¬ 
ral character of seamen in every 
age of the world ? 

29. What is said of the super 
stitions of many of the inhabit¬ 
ants of this country ? 


THE MERCHANT. 


1. What is meant by the word 
merchant? 

2. How are importing and ex¬ 
porting merchants distinguished 
from each other ? 

3. How is the business of 
merchants transacted in foreign 
countries ? 

4. What is said of the imposi¬ 
tion of duties on foreign goods ? 

5. What is said of the sale of 
goods to merchants of different 
grades, before they come to the 
consumers ? 

6. What is said of dealers in 
a small way? 

7. What is said of the general 
retail merchant ? 

8. What is said of barter ? 

9. How often do the country 
storekeepers visit the cities, to 
replenish their stores ? 

10. What is said of the high 
antiquity of commerce ? What 
is said of the precious metals as 
a standard of value ? 

11 Where do we find the 
earliest hint respecting the ex¬ 
istence of trade between differ¬ 
ent nations ? 

12. What is said of Egypt as 
the emporium of commerce ? 

13. What is said of the Phoe¬ 
nicians, and their chief cities, 
Tyre and Sidon ? 

14. What effect had the set¬ 
tlement of the Israelites, in the 
'■ Promised Land,” on the Phoe¬ 
nicians 


15. What more is said of the 
colonial system of the Phoeni¬ 
cians ? 

16. What is said of the policy 
pursued by Carthage ? and what 
of the three “ Punic wars ”? 

17. At what period was Tyre 
in its most prosperous state ? and 
when was it finally destroyed ? 

18. What is said of the city of 
Alexandria ? 

19. What is said of the prose¬ 
cution of the plans of Alexan¬ 
der by Ptolemy ? 

20. What is said of the fleets 
of Ptolemy, and trade to India ? 

21. What is said of the Greeks, 
in regard to their attention to 
nautical affairs? and what of 
Corinth ? 

22. When did Rome become 
the great mart for the sale of 
merchandise ? and what did the 
Romans give in return for it ? 

23. What more is said of the 
city of Rome ? 

24. When was Byzantium 
made the seat of the Roman 
empire? and what were the 
effects of this measure ? 

25. At what period did the 
invasions of the Roman empire 
commence ? and what were 
their effects on commerce and 
the arts ? 

26. What is said of the contin¬ 
uance of trade in the Eastern 
empire ? 

27. What is said of the con¬ 


quest of the Saracens ? and their 
enjoyment of the eastern trade ? 

28. What is said of the preju¬ 
dice of the Christians against 
the followers of Mohammed ? 

29. What European power 
first rose to commercial emi¬ 
nence ? 

30. What is said of the houses 
first built by the refugees ? 

34. When do we find the Ve- 
nitians trading to Constantinople? 
and likewise at Alexandria? 
What cities rivalled Venice in 
the tenth century ? 

32. What is said of the Cru¬ 
sades ? 

33. Where did commerce and 
manufactures begin to command 
attention in the thirteenth cen¬ 
tury? What precautions were 
taken against robbers and ban¬ 
ditti ? 

34. What is said of the Hanse 
Towns ? 

35. Where, and how often did 
the representatives of the league 
meet? 

36. What were the objects of 
the league, as disclosed in the 
fourteenth century ? 

37- By what means was the 
treasury of the league supplied? 

38. Why did the princes of 
Europe combine against the as¬ 
sociation? and when did they 
command their cities to with¬ 
draw from it ? 

39. How long did the trade to 

2 A 2 


39 















306 


QUESTIONS ON THE ARTICLES 


rhe East Indies continue to be 
carried on through Persia and 

Egypt ? 

40. What effect had the dis¬ 
covery of America, and the use 

the new pathway to India, on 
the people of Europe ? 

41. What nation soon gained 
the whole control of the East 
India trade ? 

42. When was Portugal sub¬ 
dued by Philip II. King of 
Spain ? 

43. What is said of the people 
of Holland, and those of six 
other provinces, in regard to 
their war with Spain, and their 
operations in the East Indies? 

44. How long did the United 


Provinces enjoy the whole trade 
of the East? 

45. What is said of the com¬ 
merce of the British Islands, pre¬ 
vious to the last century ? 

46. What is said of the com¬ 
merce of Great Britain, since 
Elizabeth ascended the throne ? 

47. What is said of the com¬ 
merce of the United States? 

48. How many kinds of banks 
are there ? 

49. When, and where, was 
the first bank established ? 

50. What is said of the anti¬ 
quity of lending houses ? 

51. What is said of the free 
gifts collected by the church in 
the early ages of Christianity ? 


52. What is said of the per¬ 
mission of the Roman Pontiff in 
regard to charging interest on 
loans ? 

53. What is said of the Jews 
and Merchants of Lombardy ? 

54. From what circumstances 
originated bills of exchange ? 

55. When was the Bank of 
England established ? 

50, What is said of banking 
institutions in this country ? 

57. What is the nature of the 
business done by our banks ? 

58. What is said of the Bank 
of North America ? 

59. What is the amount of the 
whole banking capital in the 
United States ? 


1. What is an auctioneer? 

2, 3. What is said of the laws 
and usages regarding sales by 
auction in the several states of 
our Union ? 

4. What is said of the sale of 
merchandise by auction in our 
principal cities ? 

5. In what manner is a pro¬ 


THE AUCTIONEER. 


posed sale at auction made 
known ? 

6. In what manner is a sale 
of this kind managed ? 

7. What is said of the “sale 
by inch of candle ” ? 

8. What is said of credits 
given at these sales ? 

9. What is said of this mode of 


sale in the compulsory payment 
of debts ? 

10. What is said of it, in the 
settlement of the estates of de¬ 
ceased persons ? 

11. What is said of the sale by 
auction among the Romans ? 

12. What is said of suppressing 
sales of merchandise at auction ? 


1. What is said of the choice 
of the Apostles by our Saviour, 
and their commission ? 

2. When did the apostles 
commence their enterprise ? and 
what success attended their la¬ 
bours ? 

3. What is said of the ordina¬ 
tion of other persons for this 
same work ? 

4. When did the Christians 
become superior in numbers to 
the pagans of the Roman em¬ 
pire ? 

5. Where did the Christians 
of the first and second centuries 
meet for worship ? 

7. What is said of the action 
of the whole church, in matters 
af common interest ? 


THE CLERGYMAN. 


8. What is said of the subjec¬ 
tion of the whole church to the 
Pope of Rome, and the Patriarch 
of Constantinople ? 

9. Why was the conquest of 
the Roman empire, by the bar¬ 
barians, injurious to the church ? 

10. When did Martin Luther 
begin his opposition to certain 
practices and doctrines of the 
church ? 

11. Who were distinguished 
by the appellations, Reformers 
and Protestants? 

12. What division of the 
church is called by the Roman 
Catholics, the Western Scfiism? 
and what the Eastern Schism ? 

13. What has been the osten¬ 
sible object of all the churches 


differing from the Romish com¬ 
munion ? 

14, 15, 16, 17. What is said of 
the government of the different 
churches ? 

18. What literary and religi¬ 
ous qualifications have been re¬ 
quired for admission to orders ? 

19. What is said of the clergy 
of the Roman Catholic church? 

20. What are the especial du¬ 
ties of clergymen ? 

31. Why do ministers of tire 
gospel occupy an elevated stand 
in all Christian communities? 

22. How are the institutions of 
religion supported ? 

23, 24, 25. What is said of the 
salary of the ministers of the 
gospel? 



















307 


OF THE PRECEDING PAGES. 


THE ATTORNEY AT LAW. 


1. What is an attorney at law? 

2. In what has this profession 
its foundation ? 

3. 4. What does municipal 
law embrace ? What is meant 
by statute law, and what by 
common law ? 

5. How many departments of 
government are provided for, in 
the constitutions of the United 
States, and of the several states ? 

6. Where is the judicial 
power of the United States 
vested ? 

7. Of what cases does the ju¬ 


diciary of the United States take 
cognisance ? 

8, 9, 10. What is said of the 
judiciary systems of the differ¬ 
ent States ? What, is said of the 
office of justice of the peace ? 

11. What qualifications are 
required for practising in the 
magistrate’s court ? 

12. What is said of the county 
courts, and what of the superior 
courts ? 

13. What is said of the deci¬ 
sion of civil cases on principles 
of equity? 


15. When a client has stated 
his case to his attorney, what is 
the particular province of the 
latter ? 

16, 17. In what manner is the 
suit managed in the county 
court ? 

18. What causes are brought 
before the judge or judges for 
adjudication ? 

19. What business of a pri¬ 
vate nature has the lawyer? 

20. What is said of the utility 
and responsibility of this profes¬ 
sion ? 


THE PHYSICIAN. 


1. On what is the profession 
of the physician founded ? 

2, 3. Where does the scrip¬ 
ture seem to place the origin of 
diseases and other calamities of 
men ? What is the substance 
of the Grecian fable of Pando¬ 
ra’s box ? 

4. Why may we infer that 
medicinal remedies were ap- 

lied in the earliest ages of the 
uman race ? 

5. To what was the origin of 
diseases attributed in some of 
the ancient nations ? 

6. Where was the healing art 
cultivated at an early period ? 

7. What custom of the Chal¬ 
deans is alluded to in this para¬ 
graph ? 

8. Where were the first re¬ 
cords of medicine kept? 

9. Who is esteemed the father 
of medicine ? 


10. Under whose patronage 
did a medical school become 
eminent in Egypt ? 

11. How long did Rome exist 
without a professional physician 
in it? 

12. What was done by the 
Romans in cases of pestilence ? 

13. Who was the first who 
practised physic at Rome, as an 
art?" 

14. What was the effect of 
Cato’s influence against the 
Greek physicians ? 

15. Who was the first medical 
writer of consideration at Rome? 

16. What is said of Galen ? 

17. After the destruction of 
the Western empire, where was 
the science of medicine culti¬ 
vated ? 

18. When and where, did the 
caliph Almonsur establish a 
hospital for the sick ? 


19. What is said of the pro¬ 
gress of the science of medicine 
in this paragraph ? 

20. To whom was the cure of 
diseases confided in Europe, 
previous to the revival of medi 
cine ? 

21. When did chemistry first 
begin to attract attention?— 
When, and by whom, was the 
circulation of the blood discov 
ered ? 

22. What is said of the dis¬ 
coveries and theories of the se¬ 
venteenth century ? 

23. What is said of the mem¬ 
bers of this profession in the 
present century ? 

24. Name the principal 
branches of medical science. 

25. What is said of the advan¬ 
tages of a diploma ? 

26. What is said of the prac¬ 
tice of this profession ? 


THE CHEMIST. 


1. What is the object of the 
scientific chemist ? 

2. What is said of the com¬ 
prehensiveness of chemistry ? 

3. What is said of the origin 


and meaning of the word chem¬ 
istry? 

4. What was the leading 
doctrine of the alchymistic phil¬ 
osophers ? 


5. What is said of the writers 
on alchymy between the tenth 
and the sixteenth centuries ? 

6. What is said of the impo¬ 
sitions of the alehymisls ? 
























308 


QUESTIONS ON THE ARTICLES 


7. What is said of the expect¬ 
ations of the chemists, in regard 
to the discovery of a universal 
medicine ? 

8. What incidental advanta¬ 
ges attended the experiments in 
search of the philosopher’s stone, 
and the universal remedy ? 

9. 10. What is said of the 
opposition to chemical medicines, 
and the final adoption of them ? 


11, 12, 13, 14, 15. What par¬ 
ticulars are related of Theophilus 
Paracelsus ? 

17. What is said of the chem¬ 
ical system of John Joachim 
Becher ? 

18. What is said of George 
Ernest Stahl ? 

19. When did chemistry be¬ 
come a fashionable study in 
France? 


20. What is said of chemistry 
in Great Britain ? 

21. What is said of the new 
theory, founded on the chemical 
affinities and combinations of 
oxygen with the various sub¬ 
stances in nature ? 

22. What is said of a new 
technical nomenclature ? 

23. What is said of chemical 
science, in the present century ? 


THE DRUGGIST AND APOTHECARY. 


1. What is a druggist? and 
what are drugs ? 

2. Whom do the druggists 
supply with materials and medi¬ 
cines ? 

3. What is meant by pharma¬ 
cy or pharmaceutics ? 

4. What operations of phar¬ 


macy are performed by the ope¬ 
rative chemist? and what by 
the apothecary ? 

5. What is the particular busi¬ 
ness of the apothecary ? 

7. What is said of the business 
and privileges of the apothecary 
in England ? 


8, 9. What means are used to 
protect the community against 
impositions in the quality of me¬ 
dicines ? 

10, 11. What is said of our 
colleges of pharmacy ? and what 
of a pharmacopceia lor the United 
States ? 


1. What is said of the subjec¬ 
tion of the human family to dis¬ 
eases in the teeth ? 

4, 5. What is said of the two 
sets of teeth which appear at 
different periods of life ? 

6. What is said of the great 
attention required, while the one 
set is being changed for the 
other ? 

8. What is said of the atten¬ 
tion to the teeth required be¬ 
tween the ages of six and fifteen ? 

9. What is said of the sub¬ 
stances composing the teeth ? 


THE DENTIST. 


10, 11, 12, 13. What is said of 
caries ? 

14, 15. What is said of the 
treatment of caries, when the 
affection is but slight ? 

16,17,18. What is said of fill¬ 
ing carious teeth ? 

19. What is said of the efficacy 
of this operation ? 

20. What is said of the extrac¬ 
tion of teeth ? 

21. 22, 23, 24. What is said of 
the nature and effects of tartar ? 

25. What is the remedy for 
diseases arising from tartar ? 


25. Why does a great propor¬ 
tion of dental operations consist 
in inserting and extracting teeth ? 

29. What is the common opin¬ 
ion relative to the extraction of 
teeth ? 

31, 32. What is said of the in¬ 
sertion of artificial teeth? ana 
what of their materials ? 

33, 34. What is said of surgical 
operations performed on the 
teeth in ancient times ? 

35, 36. What is said of the do^ 
cline and revival of the art of 
dentistry ? 


THE TEACHER. 


1. What is said of schools in 
ancient times, where priestly 
and royal despotism prevailed ? 

2. YVhat is said of schools in 
the Grecian cities ? 

3. What is said of schools 
among the Romans ? 

4. How came teachers to be 
called pedagogues? 

5. What is said of Vespasian 
and Antoninus Pius, in relation 
to their support of schools ? 


6. What is said of Christiani¬ 
ty as regards its influence on 
education ? 

7. What branches of learning 
were taught in the cathedral 
schools ? 

8. When were these schools 
surpassed by the conventual 
schools ? 

9. With what order of monks 
w T ere these schools connected ? 

10,11. What is said of the de¬ 


cree of Charlemagne in relation 
to schools ? 

12. What is said of the schools 
of the Jewish rabbins? and what 
of the Arabian schools? 

13. What is said of the emi¬ 
nent men who proceeded from 
the conventual schools ? 

14. What is said of the origin 
of universities? 

15. What is said of the division 
of the students into nations ? 




















OF THE PRECEDING PAGES. 


300 


16, 17. What is said ol aca¬ 
demical degrees ? 

18. What is said of the col¬ 
leges in the early universities ? 

19. In what manner were the 
teachers in the universities paid ? 

20. To what influence did the 
universities become subject? 

21. What is said of popular 
schools, connected with the con¬ 
vents ? 

22. What is said of the lower 
parish schools ? 

23. What is said of the teach¬ 
ers employed in the trivial and 
other schools ? 


25. What is said of the Jerony- 
mites? 

26. What is said of the study 
of the ancient classics ? 

27. What is said of the influ¬ 
ence of the art of printing, and 
of the reformation ? 

29, 30, 31, 32. What is said of 
education in Italy, Spain, Por¬ 
tugal, Austria, and France? 

33, 34, 35. What is said of 
education in England, Ireland, 
Scotland, and Russia ? 

36. From what circumstance 
has the great attention to educa¬ 
tion in the United States arisen? 


38, 39. What particulars are 
mentioned in relation to schools, 
in the states in which they are 
established by law ? 

40. Why do these schools fail 
in f ully accomplishing the ends 
for which they have been insti¬ 
tuted ? 

41. What is said of the public 
schools in the cities and populous 
towns ? 

42. What is said of select 
schools and private academies ? 

43. What is said of private 
tuition and schools in the south¬ 
ern states ? 


THE MUSICIAN, AND THE MUSICAL INSTRUMENT MAKER. 


1. What is meant by the word 
music ? 

2. What is said of the use of 
musical instruments before the 
flood ? 

3. What is said of music 
among the Hebrews ? 

4. 5. What is said of music 
among the Greeks ? 

6. When did the Greeks be¬ 
gin to cultivate music as a sci¬ 
ence ? 

7. From whom did the Ro¬ 
mans derive their music? 

8. What is said of the use of 
musical instruments by the Ro¬ 
mans ? 

9,10. What is said of the man¬ 
ner of expressing musical tones 
in ancient times ? 

11. In what way was the time 
of the notes indicated ? 

12. In what manner w'ere the 
fifteen chief notes of the Greeks 
expressed by the Romans ? 


13. What improvements were 
made by Guido Aretine ? 

14. Who invented notes by 
which the duration of sound 
could be determined ? 

16. What is said of the man¬ 
ner of singing, by the Christians, 
in the early days of the church ? 

17. What is said of the influ¬ 
ence of a new singing-school 
established by Gregory the 
Great ? 

18. What is said of the Grego¬ 
rian chant? 

19. What is said of music in 
distinct parts ? 

20. What is said of the influ¬ 
ence of the reformation on sacred 
music ? 

21. What is said of the free 
chamber style, and the opera ? 

22,23. What is said of the em¬ 
ployment of the musician ? and 
what of the professors of mu¬ 
sic? 


THE MUSICAL INSTRUMENT MAKER. 

I. What operations are united 
in this business ? 

3,4. Describe the essential and 
prominent parts of the organ. 

5. What is said of the fingering 
of the organ ? 

6. Where is the largest organ ? 

7. At what period were organs 
first employed in churches ? 

8. What is said of the hand or 
barrel organ ? 

9. What is said of the instru¬ 
ments belonging to the class of 
horns ? 

10. What is said of the instru¬ 
ments of the flute kind ? 

II, 12, 13. What is said of 
stringed instruments ? and what 
of the piano forte, in particu¬ 
lar? 

14. What is said of instruments 
of percussion ? 

15,16. What is said of the bag¬ 
pipe ? 


1. What operations are in¬ 
cluded in the art of sculpture ? 

2. What are the principal pro¬ 
ductions of this art ? 

3. What is meant by each of 
the terms, alto relievo , mezzo re¬ 
lievo , and basso relievo ? 

4. What course of study is es¬ 
sential to proficiency in sculp¬ 
ture ? 


THE SCULPTOR. 


5. What is said of a model to 
guide the operator in the execu¬ 
tion of a proposed work ? 

6. In what manner is the stone 
wrought and polished ? 

8, 9, 10, 11. From what sub¬ 
jects are casts taken in plaster 
and bronze ? and in what man¬ 
ner are they taken in plaster ? 

13. What is siad of moulds 


made of a warm solution of 
glue? 

14,15. Explain the process of 
taking casts from statues in 
bronze. 

16. What is said of the great 
antiquity of this art ? 

17. In what writings do we 
find the first notice of this art? 

18. What is said of the exist- 



















310 


QUESTIONS ON THE ARTICLES 


ence of sculpture and painting 
among the Canaanites in the 
time of Moses ? 

20, 21. What is said of sculp¬ 
ture among the Egyptians ? 

22. What nation among the 
ancients was most distinguished 
for sculpture ? 

23. What is said of Daxla- 
lus ? 

24. What is said of the estab¬ 
lishment of schools of design ? 

25. When did Phidias flour¬ 
ish ? 

26. What is said of the ideal 
style, and some of the works of 
Phidias ? 


27. Who were the favourite 
disciples of Phidias ? What is 
said of the beautiful style ? 

28. To what causes are attrib¬ 
uted the great superiority of the 
Greeks in sculpture ? 

29. How were the fine arts 
affected in Greece by the con¬ 
quest of the Romans? 

30. What is said of the encou¬ 
ragement of the arts at Rome 
and at Byzantium ? 

31. W’hat is said of the decline 
of sculpture ? and w hat of the re¬ 
vival of the arts of design? 

32. By what means was this 
improvement promoted ? 


33, 34. What is said of Nicolo 
and John Pisano ? 

35,36. What is said of an acad 
emy of design formed at Flor- 

6HC6 ? 

37, 38. What is said of Mi¬ 
chael Angelo Buonarolti ? 

39. What is said of the decline 
of sculpture ? and w hat of its re¬ 
vival by Antonio Canova? 

40. What is said of the fine 
arts in France ? 

41. What is said of sculpture 
in Spain, Germany, Holland, 
and England ? What is said of 
the cultivation of the fine arts, 

[ in the United States ? 


THE PAINTER. 


1. W T hat is painting ? 

2. Name the different branch¬ 
es into which the theory and 
practice of this art are divided. 
\\hat is meant by invention ? 

3. 4, 5. What is meant by each 
of the terms, composition, design, 
and perspective ? 

6, 7. What is said of chiaro- 
obscuro ? 

8. What is said of the employ¬ 
ment ofcolouring substances, and 
the manner of their application ? 

9. What have given rise to 
the different kinds of painting ? 

10. What is said of painting 
with crayons, and in t vater-co- 
lours ? 

11. 12, 13. What is said of 
painting in distemper, in fresco, 
and in oil ? 

14. What is said of mosaics, 
or mosaic paintings l 

15. Into how many classes are 
drawings and paintings divided ? 

16. YVhat is the foundation of 
the arts of design ? 

17. 18. What is said of the 


antiquity of painting and sculp¬ 
ture ? 

19. What is said of the art of 
painting in Egypt ? 

20. For what purposes was 
painting employed in the early 
days of its existence ? 

23. Describe the different 
kinds of painting, as marked by 
the successive stages of the art 
among the Greeks. 

24. What is said of a picture 
called the battle of the Magnetes? 

25. What is said of Aglaophon 
and Polygnotus ? 

26. Who carried the art of 
painting to the greatest perfec¬ 
tion to which it attained in an¬ 
cient times ? 

27. What is said of Apelles? 

28. What is said of the decline 
of this art among the Greeks ? 

29. 30. What is said of paint¬ 
ers, and the art of painting, 
among the Romans? 

31. When did the Romans en¬ 
courage the Grecian artists with 
great munificence ? 


32. What is said of the de¬ 
cline, preservation, and revival, 
of sculpture, painting, and archi¬ 
tecture ? 

33, 34. W T hat is said of Gio¬ 
vanni Cimabue ? 

35, 36. What is said of Giotto? 

37. What is said of the Acad¬ 
emy of St. Luke ? 

38,39. What is said of Masac¬ 
cio? and what of Leonardo da 
Vinci ? 

40. What is said of the intro¬ 
duction of oil, as a vehicle for 
paints ? 

41. What is said of painting 
in Flanders and Germany ? 

42. When, and by whom, was 
the art of painting perfected ] 

43. By w hom w as the art es¬ 
sentially aided in its progressive 
stages of advancement ? 

45. What is said of Rubens 
and Rembrandt? and what of 
their scholars? 

46, 47, 48, 49. What is said of 
the art in Spain, France, Eng¬ 
land, and English America? 


THE ENGRAVER. 


THE WOOD ENGRAVER. 
What is said of engraving in 
general ? 

1. What is said of engraving 
on wood by the Chinese ? 

2. Hovv early was this art 


practised in various parts of Eu¬ 
rope? What were the earliest 
subjects executed ? 

3, 4. What is said of block- 
boobs ? 

5. What is said of the art near ! 


the close of the fifteenth centu 
ry ? and also in the sixteenth 
and eighteenth centuries? 

6. On w hat kinds of wood did 
the earlier artist operate, and 
, w hat kind is now used ? 






















OF THE PRECEDING PAGES. 


311 


7 How did the engravers, in 
the infancy of the art, prepare 
the wood ? and how do thev now 
do it ? 

8. In what manner is the 
drawing made on the block? 
and how is the engraving exe¬ 
cuted ? 

9. What is said of the charac¬ 
ter of wood engravings? and 
what of their convenience ? 


THE COPPERPLATE ENGRAVER. 

1. Why are the engravers on 
metallic surfaces generally, de¬ 
nominated copperplate engra¬ 
vers ? 

2, 3. Describe the principal in¬ 
struments employed by this art¬ 
ist 

4. What are the principal va¬ 
rieties or styles of engraving on 
copper ? 


5, 6, 7. What is said of line 
engraving ? 

8. What is said of stippling ? 

9, 10,11. What is said of etch¬ 
ing ? 

12,13. What is said of memo- 
tint o ? 

14, 15,16,17. What is said of 
aqua-tinta ? 

18, 19, 20. What is said of 
steel engraving ? 


THE COPPERPLATE PRINTER. 


1. What is the business of the 
copperplate printer ? 

2. What is said of the claims 
of different nations to the honour 
of introducing this art? 

3. What incident suggested 
the idea of taking impressions 
from engraved plates ? 


4. Of what materials is the ink 
composed which is used in this 
kind of printing ? 

5, 6. Describe the process of 
copperplate printing. 

7. What number of impressions 
can be taken from engraved cop¬ 
perplates ? 


8,9. What is said of engravings 
on plates of steel, and the method 
of their transfer from one plate 
to another ? 

10. Why have engraving and 
copperplate printing become em¬ 
ployments of considerable im¬ 
portance ? 


THE LITHOGRAPHER. 


1. What is the origin of the 
word lithography, and what the 
nature of the art to which the 
term is applied ? 

2. What kinds of stone are 
used in this art ? 

3. In what manner are the 
stones prepared for use ? 

4. What is said of making the 
drawing on the stone ? 


5. What is said of lithographic 
ink and chalk ? 

6. In whatmanner is the draw¬ 
ing prepared for taking impres- 
sons ? 

7. 8. What is the composition 
of the ink used in this kind of 
printing ? and in what manner 
are impressions taken ? 

9. What number of impres¬ 


sions may be taken from the dif¬ 
ferent kinds of drawings ? 

10. In what manner can im¬ 
pressions from engravings be 
multiplied indefinitely? 

11. What is said of the inven¬ 
tion of lithography ? 

12. What was the character 
of the first productions of the 
art? 


THE AUTHOR. 


1. What is meant by the word 
author ? 

2. On what subjects do authors 
commonly write ? 

3. 4. What is said of tradition, 
•and other means of transmitting 
information to posterity, before 
the invention of letters ? 

5. What is said of the claims 
of different nations to the inven¬ 
tion of letters ? 

6. What is said of the Penta¬ 
teuch ? 


7. From what source did al¬ 
phabetical writing spring ? 

8. What is said of the ancient 
alphabets ? and what of the con¬ 
formation of the letters of differ¬ 
ent languages ? 

9. What is said of the mode 
of arranging the letters in wri¬ 
ting? 

10. What is said of literary 
property in ancient times ? 

11. 12, 13. What legislative 
protection has been extended to 


literary property in England, at 
different times ? 

14. What is said of the juris¬ 
diction of, and laws concerning, 
this subject in the United States ? 
0 15,16. What is said of literary 
property in France, Germany, 
and some other countries ? 

17. Why have not literary pro¬ 
ductions been placed on the same 
footing with other property ? 

18. Do authors publish’ their 
own works ? 
























312 


QUESTIONS ON THE ARTICLES 


■=5 


THE PRINTER. 


1. From what did the art of 
printing arise ? 

2. What is said of the uncer¬ 
tainty which rests upon the his¬ 
tory of printing ? 

3,4. YVhat statements are made 
.n support of the claims of Haer- 
>em ? and what in opposition to 
them ? 

5, 6, 7, 8. What particulars 
are stated of the early operations 
in printing at Mentz ? 

9. What is said of Faust and 
Peter Schoeffer ? 

10. By whose aid did Guttem- 
burg establish another press ? 

11. YY * * 6 7 8 9 ho completed the inven¬ 
tion of the art of printing ? 

12. 13. YVhat particulars are 
related of the sale of Latin Bibles 
in Paris by Faust ? 

14. YY’hat is said of the romance 
of “ Dr. Faustus and the Devil”? 


15. What is said of the death 
of Faust, Geinsfleisch, and Gut- 
temburg ? 

16. YVhat is said of the use of 
vellum lor the earliest printed 
books ? 

17. What is said of the secre¬ 
cy observed by the Mentz print¬ 
ers ? 

18. Into how T many places was 
the art of printing introduced 
before the year 1500 ? 

19. In w r hat country did print¬ 
ed newspapers originate ? 

20. When did the first news¬ 
paper appear in England ? 

21. YVhat is said of the news¬ 
papers in Great Britain and Ire¬ 
land in 1829 ? 

22. YVhat is said of the news¬ 
papers in the United States ? 

23. YVhat is said of periodicals 
in Franee ? 


24. YVhat is said of the regular 
periodicals of Europe ? 

25. YY r hat is said of the work¬ 
men in a printing office? 

26. IIovv are the types arran¬ 
ged in the case for use ? 

27. YVhat is said of the com¬ 
posing-stick, and what of the 
manner of using it ? 

28. \Y : hat is said of the use of 
quadrats, and the galley ? 

29. YVhat is said of dividing 
the columns of types into pages, 
and locking them up in a chase ? 

30. What is said of the proof l 

31. 32. Describe the manner 
in which impressions are taken 
from the types on paper. 

33. What is said of the improve¬ 
ments made in the printing busi¬ 
ness within the present century? 

34. YVhat is said of printing 
i by machinery ? 


1. YVhat are types ? and of what 
materials are they composed ? 

2. YY T hat is said of the matrix 
and mould used in casting types ? 

3. In w hat manner is the cast¬ 
ing of types performed ? 


THE TYPE-FOUNDER. 


4, 5. Describe the several ope¬ 
rations connected with the fin¬ 
ishing of these instruments. 

6. Name the principal sizes 
of types. What is meant by a 
fount of types ? 


7. YVho invented the art of 

casting types ? 

8, 9. What character was 
first employed in printing? What 
is said of the Old English, Ro¬ 
man, and Italic characters ? 


THE STEREOTYPER. 


1. What is the origin of the 
word stereotype ? 

2. Of what material, and in 
what manner, are moulds form¬ 
ed in stereotyping ? 


3. How is a cast taken from 
a mould thus formed ? 

4. Describe the operations per¬ 
formed on the plates in the fin¬ 
ishing room. 


5. How are the plates applied 
in printing ? 

6, 7, 8, 9, 10. Give the history 
of this art, as stated in these 
paragraphs. 


THE PAPER-MAKER, AND THE BOOKBINDER. 


THE PAPER-MAKER. 

1,2, 3. On what materials, and 
with what instruments, was wri¬ 
ting performed in the early days 
«»f the art ? 

4. In what substances were 
’materials found,adapted to works 
of magnitude ? 

5 Where did the plant papy¬ 


rus grow? and how was paper 

manufactured from it? 

6. Describe the process of 

making parchment. 

8. At what place was the 
greatest quantity of paper man¬ 
ufactured ? 

9, 10, 11. Give the history of 
the modern paper manufacture. 


12. Name the materials most 
commonly employed. 

14. Describe the first stage of 
the process. 

15. By what means are the 
rags reduced to a pulp? 

16. How is the pulp rendered 
perfectly clean ? and by w hat 
substances is it bleached ? 





















OF THE PRECEDING PAGES. 


313 


17. By what means, and in 
what manner, are the fibrous 
particles formed into a continued 
sheet of paper ? 

19, 20. Describe the success¬ 
ive operations necessary to com¬ 
plete the manufacture. 

22. Describe the method of 
making paper by hand or by 
means of moulds. 


THE BOOKBINDER. 

1. What is bookbinding ? 

2, 3. What is said of the anti¬ 


quity of this art ? and the earli¬ 
est method of binding books ? 

4. In what manner is the fold¬ 
ing of the sheets performed ? 

5. In what manner are they 
gathered ? 

6. In what manner are the 
sheets sewed together ? 

7. How does the workman 
proceed in preparing the book 
for the application of the paste¬ 
board ? 

8. With what instrument are 
the leaves trimmed ? 

9. With what material, and in 


what manner, are the books co¬ 
vered ? 

10. In what manner are the co¬ 
vers sprinkled or marbled ? 

11. What more is done, to pre= 
pare the books for the reception 
of the ornaments ? 

12. 13. In what do the orna¬ 
ments consist l and in what man¬ 
ner are they applied ? 

14. When are books said to 
be full-bound ? and when half- 
bound ? 

15. How are the different sizes 
of books designated ? 


THE BOOKSELLER. 


1. How was the book business 
carried on, before the invention 
of typography ? 

2. What is said of the copying 
performed by the monks? 

3. What is said of the value 
of books in those times ? 

4. What is said of the dealers 
in books called slationarii l 


5. Who were the first book¬ 
sellers, after the invention of 
printing ? 

6. Who was the first bookseller 
that was not also a printer ? 

8. Name some of the cities 
which are centres of the book 
trade in Europe ? 

9, 10, 11, 12. What is said of 


I the trade sales in the United 
I States ? 

13. What is said of the sale 
of books by auction to miscella- 

1 neous collections of people ? 

14, 15, 16. What is said of 
the sale of books by travelling 
agents ? and also by country mer¬ 
chants ? 


THE ARCHITECT. 


1. What is the general sense 
of the w ord architecture ? 

2. Why may we suppose that 
architecture was brought to con¬ 
siderable perfection before the 
flood ? 

3. From what circumstances 
originated the different styles of 
building ? 

5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12. What 
is said of th e foundation, the col¬ 
umn or pillar, the wall, the lintel, 
the arch, the vault, the dome or 
cupola, and the roof ? 

14. Name the different styles 
of building w r hich have been 
^recognized in modem times. 


15, 16,17. What is said of the 
Egyptian, Chinese, and Grecian 
styles of building ? 

18. What is meant by the or¬ 
ders of architecture ? 

19, 20, 21. What is said of the 
three Grecian orders ? 

23. What is said of the gene¬ 
ral form of the Grecian temples? 

24. When was Grecian archi¬ 
tecture at its greatest perfection? 

25. What is said of the Roman 
style ? and what of the Tuscan 
and Composite orders ? 

26. What is said of the temples 
of the Romans ? 

27. 28. What is said of the 


Greco-Gothic and Saracenic 
styles ? 

29. Why was the term Gothic 
applied to the edifices of the 
middle ages ? 

30. What are the characteris¬ 
tics of this style ? 

31. What is the form of the 
ecclesiastical edifices of this style 
of building ? 

32. What is meant by each 
of the following words— steeple, 
tower, spire, lantern, turret, butr 
tress, pinnacle, parapet, and bat¬ 
tlement ? 

34. What particular styles are 
now chiefly employed ? 


THE CARPENTER. 


1. W iat is the business of the 
carpenter ? 

2. What is said of the joiner ? 

3. What is said of the subser- 
viency of carpentry and joinery 
to the professional architect ? 

40 


4. What is said of contracts 
for the erection of buildings ? 

6. By what are the carpenter 
and joiner guided in the perfor¬ 
mance of their work ? 

7. Name the principal tools 


with which tnese artisans ope¬ 
rate. 

8. What kinds of timber are 
used for buildiiJg in the U. Stales? 

9, 10, 11. What is said of the 
lumbering business l 

2 B 





























314 


QUESTIONS ON THE ARTICLES 


\ 




THE STONE-MASON, THE BRICKLAYER, &c. 


THE MASON. 

1. What does the art of ma¬ 
sonry include ? 

2. Name the rocks most used 
in building in the United States. 

3. What is the particular bu¬ 
siness of the quarrymen? 

4. By what means are the 
blocks of stone divided, and re¬ 
duced to form ? 

5. 6. By what means, and in 
what manner, are the stones pol¬ 
ished ?' 

8. From what sources does the 
stone-cutter derive a great pro¬ 
portion of his profits ? 


THE STONE-MASON. 

I. Where do the stone-cutters 
set their own work ? 

3, 4. What is the composition 
of the mortars used in laying 
marble ? 

6. What is said of lime ? 

7, 8, 9. What is said of mason¬ 
ry required in situations under 
water ? 

10. What is said of the walls 
of buildings in the construction 
of which costly stones are em¬ 
ployed ? 

II. What instruments are em¬ 
ployed in cutting and laying 
stone ? 

13. What was the state of this 
art in ancient times ? 


THE BRICKMAKER. 

1. Of what substances is brick 
composed ? 

2. Where do we find the ear¬ 
liest historical notice of bricks ? 

3. 4. What methods of manu¬ 
facturing bricks were practised 
in ancient times ? 

5. What was the size of the 
most common bricks employed 
by the Romans? 

6. What is said of the great 
use of bricks in the United 
States ? 

7. 8. Describe the operations 
of making bricks. 

9. What is a day’s work for a 
gang ? 

11. What is said of machines 
for making and pressing bricks ? 

12. What is said of tiles ? 


9. What does Ilollingshead 
say of the age preceding that 
of Queen Elizabedi ? 


THE PLASTERER. 

1. In w hat departments of ar¬ 
chitecture is plastering more par. 
licularly applied ? 

2. Of w'hat materials is the 
mortar for the several coats com¬ 
posed ? 

3. What tools are used by the 
plasterer ? 

4. What is said of the use of 
cornices? and what of their 
materials, and mode of applica¬ 
tion ? 

5. What is said of ornaments 
of irregular shape ? 

6. 7. What is said of rougli- 
casting ? 


THE BRICKLAYER. 

1. What is the particular bu¬ 
siness of the bricklayer ? 

2, 3,4. Describe the two meth¬ 
ods of laying brick, mentioned 
in these paragraphs. 

6. What is said of the inven¬ 
tion of the chimney ? 

7. In what part of the house 
did the Romans locate the hearth 
or fireplace ? 

8. What method of heating 
dwellings w T as invented in the 
time of Seneca ? 


THE SLATER. 

1. For what particular prop¬ 
erty is slate stone valuable? 

2, 3. Whence are obtained 
the slates used in the United 
States? and how are they pre 
pared for application? 

4. In what manner are slates 
applied to roofs ? 

5, 6. What is said of the value 
of slates, as compared with shin¬ 
gles? and what of metallic 
roofs? 


THE PAINTER, AND THE GLAZIER. 


THE HOUSE AND SIGN PAINTER. 

1. To what does house and 
sign painting relate ? 

2. Name some of the sub¬ 
stances employed by this art¬ 
ist. 

3. 4, 5. In what manner is the 
manufacture of white lead and 
litharge conducted ? 

6. What is said of Spanish 
brown, yellow' ochre, terra di 
sienna, red ochre, and chrome 
yellow ? 

7, 8, 9. What is said of linseed- 
oil, and spirits of turpentine ? 

10. What is said of the prepa¬ 
ration of paints ? 


11. What is said of mixing 
colours for use ? 

12, 13. What particulars are 
stated in regard to the execution 
of house painting ? 

14, 15. What is meant by 
graining ? and what by orna¬ 
mental ]tainting ? 

17. What is said of painting 
and lettering signs ? 


THE GLAZIER. 

1. Describe the operation of 
I fitting and confining panes to 
window sashes. 

| 3. By what means, and in 


what manner, are panes cut to 
any proposed size ? 

4. What is said of the win¬ 
dows in the houses of oriental 
countries ? 

5. What substances were used 
for windows by the Romans ? 

6. What statement is made by 
Gregory of Tours, w'itli regard 
to the employment of glass win¬ 
dows ? 

7. What does Arneas Sylvius 
sav of glass windows in Vienna, 
in'1458? 

8. 9, 10. What is said of co¬ 
loured glass? and what of poittf- 
ing on glass ? 
























OF THE PRECEDING PAGES. 


315 


1. What is said of the exten¬ 
sive application of this art ? 

2. In what kind of an appara¬ 
tus is turning performed ? 

3. 4. How is the wood fasten¬ 
ed in the lathe in the different 
kinds of turning ? 


THE TURNER. 


5. What instruments are used 
in turning wood ? and in what 
manner are they employed ? 

6. What is said of the groov¬ 
ing tool ? and what of instruments 
for turning metals ? 

7. What is said of the calipers ? 


8. In turning different sub¬ 
stances, what particular thing is 
to be especially regarded ? 

9. What is said of the perfec¬ 
tion and accuracy of this art ? 

10. What is said of the anti¬ 
quity of the lathe ? 


THE CABINET-MAKER, AND THE UPHOLSTERER. * 


THE CABINET-MAKER. 

1. What is the business of the 
cabinet-maker ? 

2, 3. What qualifications are 
required to make a finished cab¬ 
inet-maker ? 

4. What is said of the changes 
continually taking place in the 
form and construction of furni¬ 
ture ? 

5. What kinds of wood are 
most frequently employed by the 
cabinet-maker ? 

6. 7. What circumstances led 
to the introduction of mahogany 
as a material for cabinet ware ? 

9, 10, 11, 12, 13. Describe the 
process of constriffctig a bureau. 


14,15. With what substances, 
and in what manner, is the bu¬ 
reau varnished and polished ? 

17. By what means, and in 
what manner, are logs of ma¬ 
hogany sawn into thin pieces for 
veneering ? 

18. What is said of the differ¬ 
ent kinds of mahogany ? 


THE UPHOLSTERER 

1. What is the business of the 
upholsterer ? 

2, 3, 4. Of what materials are 
beds and mattresses composed ? 

5. What is the best material 
for mattresses ? 


6. Of what use is drawing in 
this business ? 

7. Who are the principal ope¬ 
rators in this business ? 

8. What is said of the skins 
of beasts as applied for beds ? 

9. What was the first advance 
ment from the use of skins ? 

10. What kind of beds did the 
Romans use ? 

11. When did the Romans 
adopt the eastern custom of re¬ 
clining at their meals ? 

12. 13, 14. What particulars 
are stated regarding this cus¬ 
tom ? 

15. What is said of the origin, 
use, and manufacture of carpets? 


THE CHAIR-MAKER. 


1. What is said of the use of 
the chair by the nations of anti¬ 
quity ? 

2, 3. What is said of the seats 
used by the barbarous conquer¬ 
ors of the Roman empire ? 

4. What is said of our old- 
fashioned chair ? 


5. Where was the Windsor 
chair first used ? and what was 
its original construction ? 

6. Whence do the chair-ma¬ 
kers obtain their stuff? 

7. Describe the Windsor chair. 

8. Describe the process of its 
construction. 


9,10. Describe the process of 
finishing and ornamenting chairs. 

11. What is said of other kinds 
. of chairs made by the common 

chair-maker ? 

12. What is said of the manu 
facture of mahogany chairs ? 


THE CARVER, AND THE GILDER. 


THE CARVER. 

1. What is meant by carving ? 

2. What is said of the anti¬ 
quity of carving in wood ? 

3. What is said of the appli¬ 
cation of this art ? 

4. What is said of the style of 
Ixtuis the Fourteenth ? 

5. In what manner is carving 
executed ? 


6 What are the particular 
qualifications necessary to make 
a finished carver ? 


THE GILDER. 

1. What is said of the union 
of the two employments, carving 
and gilding ? 

2. For what purposes is gilding 


most frequently employed ? and 
in what does the process consist? 

3, 4. Describe the process of 
preparing the surface for the ap¬ 
plication of the metal. 

5. With what instrument is 
the gold leaf applied ? What is 
meant by gilding in oil ? 

6. How are the ornaments on 
the frames produced? 
































316 


QUESTIONS ON THE ARTICLES 


THE COOPER. 


1. What is the business of the 
cooper ? 

2, 3. What is said of the anti¬ 
quity of this art? and what of 
the substitutes lor its produc¬ 
tions ? 


4. What woods are chiefly ern-1 10. What is said of the opera- 

ployed in this business ? j tions in oak ? What materials 

6, 7, 8. Describe the process are used Ibr hoops ? 
of making a tub. ! 11. What is said of this busi- 

9. What is said of flic cedar ness, as connected with the West 
tree ? i India trade ? 


1. What is a wheelwright ? 

3. Name the principal kinds 
of wheel carnages. 

4. What is said of the division 
of labour in this business ? 

5. 6. What are the constituent 
parts of a wheel ? and of what 
materials are they composed ? 

7. What kind of wood is em¬ 
ployed for the carriage part, and 
for the frame of the body ? 

8, 9. To what particular parts 
of the wheels and carriage does 
the blacksmith apply iron ? 


THE WHEELWRIGHT. 


10. Describe the process of 
painting, varnishing, and polish¬ 
ing the body of the coach. 

12. Where do we find the 
first authentic notice of the use 
of wheel carriages ? 

13. What is said of chariots 
of war ? 

14. What is said of the car¬ 
riages used bv the Romans ? 

15. 16, 17, 18 What is said of 
the general practice of riding on 
the back of the horse and mule 
during the feudal ages ? 


19. When were three coaches 
introduced into Paris ? 

20. When were coaches intro¬ 
duced into Spain, Portugal, and 
Sweden ? 

21. When were coaches intro¬ 
duced into England ? 

22. What historical particulars 
are stated with regard to the 
coach in England ? 

23. What is said of the stage¬ 
coach ? 

24. What is said of the manufac¬ 
ture of carriages in the U. States? 


THE POTTER. 


1. What is the business of the 
potter ? 

2. What is said of alumine ? 

3. How may the various pro¬ 
ductions of the pottery be class¬ 
ed ? 

4. What is the material of the 
common earthen ware ? 

5. 6. Describe the process of 
preparing the material for the 
most common earthen ware. 

7, 8. How is the clay prepared 
for the best kind of this ware ? 

9, 10, 11. Of what materials 
are the white and cream-coloured 
wares made, and how are they 
prepared for use ? 

13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 


21, 22. What is said on the sev¬ 
eral processes of throwing, turn¬ 
ing, pressing, burning, painting 
and printing, and glazing 1 

23, 24- What is said of stone 
warel 

25. Of what materials do the 
Chinese make porcelain ? 

26. In what proportions are 
the materials combined ? 

27. What is said of the inven¬ 
tion. and early manufacture of 
porcelain ? 

28. When, and by whom, were 
specimens of the materials of 
porcelain, and a description of 
the process of the manufacture, 
sent to France ? 


29. What eflfct resulted from 
the communication of Father En- 
trecolles ? 

30. What is said of the com¬ 
parative beauty and intrinsic 
goodness of the Chinese and Eu 
ropean porcelains ? 

31. What is said of the exist¬ 
ence of porcelain earths in the 
United States ? 

22. Why may we sup|>ose that 
this w as one of the antediluvian 
arts ? 

33. What is said of the skill 
of the Greeks and Etruscans ? 

34. What is said of the condi¬ 
tion and improvement of the art, 
in modern times ? 


THE GLASS-BLOWER. 


1. What is glass ? 

2. In what manner are quartz 
pebbles and flints reduced to 
pow der ? 

3. What alkaline substances 
are used ? 


4, 5. What metallic oxides are 
used ? 

6. Describe the furnace in 
which the materials are melt¬ 
ed. 

7- Of what materials, and in 


what manner, are the melting 
pots made ? 

8. What fuel is employed in 
fusing the metal ? 

10. Is every species of glass 
w r are made at one glass-house ? 
























OF THE PRECEDING PAGES. 


317 


13, 14, 15, 16. Describe the 
several methods of blowing win¬ 
dow glass. 

17. How is the casting of plate 
glass performed ? 

18. By what means are such 
plates rendered good reflectors ? 

19. 20. Describe the manner 
in which vessels are formed by 
the process of moulding. 


21. How is the operation of 
pressing performed ? 

22. In what manner is glass 
annealed ? 

23. What is said of cut glass? 

24. In what does the process 
of glass cutting consist ? 

25. 26. What is the usual story 
of the origin of the invention of 
glass ? 


27. How early is it supposed 
that glass was invented ? 

28. What is said of this manu¬ 
facture at Alexandria, and at 
Rome ? 

29. 30. What is said of its ex¬ 
istence in Italy, Germany, and 
England, in more modern times? 

31,32. What is said of this man¬ 
ufacture in the United States ? 


THE OPTICIAN. 


1. To whom is the word opti¬ 
cian applicable ? 

2. What is light ? 

3. Explain the terms in this 
paragraph marked by italics. 

4. What is meant by a medium? 
VVhen are rays said to be re¬ 
fracted, and when reflected ? 

5. What is a lens ? 

6. What is an incident ray? 
and what a reflected ray ? 

7. 8. Explain the phenomenon 
illustrated by the cut. 

9. Why is this phenomenon 
called the camera obscura ? 

10. Point out the several parts 
)f the eye, exhibited by the cut. 

11. 12. What is said of the 
sd erotica, cornea, iris, crystalline 
lens, vitreous humour, anil retina? 

13. Explain the theory of vi¬ 
sion, as expressed in this para¬ 
graph. 


14. On what is the art of 
constructing optical instruments 
founded ? 

15. What is said of the visual 
point ? 

16. 17. From what particular | 
causes do myopy and presbyopy 
originate ? 

19. What is the obstacle to 
view'ing small objects at the 
usual distance ? and how is it 
removed ? 

20, 21, 22. What is said of mi¬ 
croscopes ? 

23. What is said of the magic 
lantern ? 

24, 25. How many kinds of 
telescopes are there ? and. how is 
each kind constructed ? 

26. Who was the first system¬ 
atical writer on light ? 

28. What is said of Alhazen 
and Vitellio ? 


29. What particular fact was 
demonstrated by Roger Bacon ? 

30, 31. What is said of Mau- 
rolicus, and John Baptista Porta? 

32, 33. What circumstances 
led to the invention of the tele¬ 
scope ? 

34. What particular discove¬ 
ries were made by John Kepler? 

35. How was the fact demon¬ 
strated, that vision depends upon 
the formation of objects upon 
the retina? 

36. Who discovered the velo¬ 
city of light? and who published 
the first proposal for a reflecting 
telescope ? 

37. 38. What particular disco¬ 
veries on light and colours were 
made by Sir Isaac Newton? 

39. What is said of the splen¬ 
dour of Sir Isaac Newton’s dis¬ 
coveries ? 


THE GOLDBEATER, AND THE JEWELLER. 


GOLD. 

1. What metals are most ex¬ 
tensively employed in the arts? 

2. \Vhat is said of gold as a 
representative of property ? 

3. With what metals is gold 
most frequently alloyed ? 

4. What division of this metal 
has been adopted lor conveni¬ 
ence in commerce ? 

5. W r here is gold found ? 

6. How is gold separated from 
foreign matters with which it 
may be combined ? 

7. What is meant by sublima¬ 
tion? and for what purpose is 
the process employed ? 

8. In what does the process 
of cupellation consist ? 


9. For what purpose is the 
process of parting used ? and in 
what does it consist ? 

10. What is said of cementa¬ 
tion ? 

11. What amount of gold is 
yielded by the southern states ? 


THE GOLD BEATER 

1. What is the business of the 
gold-beater ? 

2, 3, 4. Describe the process 
of gold-beating. 

5. How many perfect leaves 
are obtained from the two ounces 
and a half of gold ? 

7. What is said of party gold 
leaf? and what of Dutch leaf? 


8, 9. What is said of gold-beat¬ 
ing and gilding among the Ro¬ 
mans ? 

10, 11. What is said of gold 
voire ? and what of gold-thread ? 


THE JEWELLER. 

1. What is the employment 
of the jeweller ? 

2. Name the principal pre 
cious stones. 

3. In what proportion are pre¬ 
cious stones valuable ? 

4. 5. How are the weight and 
value of the most precious stones 
estimated ? 

6, 8. What is said of the Pitl 
or Regent diamond? and what of 

2 B 2 


























318 


QUESTIONS ON THE ARTICLES 


the Effingham, or Russian dia¬ 
mond? 

8. What is the size of the 
largest diamond hitherto known? 

10. What particular notion in¬ 
creased the value of precious 
stones in ancient times ? 

11. Whence originated the art 
of the gem-engraver, or gem- 
sculptor ? 

12. What are the productions 
of gem-sculpture ? 

13. By what means does this 
artist perform his work ? 

14. What is said of the en¬ 
graved gems of antiquity ? 


15 What is said of the imita¬ 
tion of precious stones generally ? 

16, 17. In what does the busi¬ 
ness of the lapidary consist? 
and in what manner does he 
perform his operations ? 

18. Of what metals is the 
lapidary’s wheel made ? 

20 From what kind of fish 
are pearls obtained ? and where 
are they lound ? 

21. What are pearls ? 

22. Whose business is it to 
collect the shells ? 

23. In what manner is the di¬ 
ver prepared for his descent ? 


25. How are the shells and 
pearls treated ? 

27. What is said of the value 
of pearls ? 

28. What is said of the em¬ 
ployment of the gem-engraver 
and jeweller by Moses ? 

29. What evidence have we 
of the high antiquity of the arts 
connected with the production 
of jewelry ? 

30. What is said of the French 
and English jewellers ? 

31. What is said of the manu¬ 
facture of jewelry in the United 
States ? 


THE SILVERSMITH, AND THE WATCHMAKER. 


SILVER. 

1. What is said of the mallea¬ 
bility of silver ? 

2. What has been the relative 
value of silver and gold ? 

3,4, 5. What methods are pur¬ 
sued for separating silver from 
its various ores ? 


THE SILVERSMITH. 

2. What are the most common 
subjects of manufacture by this 
artisan ? 

3. How are dollars reduced 
to plates ? 

4,5, 6,7, 8, 9,10. Describe the 
process of making a plain tea-pot. 

11. In what manner is chasing 
executed ? 


13,14. What reasons have we 
for supposing that gold and sil¬ 
ver were known to the antedi¬ 
luvians ? 


THE CLOCK AND WATCHMAKER. 

1. What divisions of time are 
noted by uncivilized men ? 

2. What historical facts are 
stated in relation to the sun¬ 
dial? 

3. Describe the sun-dial as it 
is now constructed. 

4. 5, 6. What is said of the 
clepsydra ? 

8. What is said of the inven¬ 
tion of the clock ? 

9. When were large clocks in 
steeples first used ? 


10, 11. What is said of Henry 
de Wick’s clock ? 

12. What is said of the appli¬ 
cation of the pendulum to clock 
work ? 

13. What is said of the intro¬ 
duction of the clock into private 
dwellings? and what of portable 
clocks ? 

14. Who constructed the first 
watch ? 

16. What is said of the inven¬ 
tion of the spring balance ? 

17. What particular inventions 
and improvements are mentioned 
in this paragraph ? 

18. 19. Describe the mechan¬ 
ism of the clock and watch. 

21. Where are watches exten¬ 
sively manufactured ? 


THE COPPERSMITH, THE BUTTON-MAKER, &c. 


COPPER. 

1. What kind of a metal is 
copper ? 

2, 3. Describe the process by 
which copper is separated from 
sulphuretted ores. 

4, 5, 6,7. What is said of the 
alloys of copper ? 


THE COPPERSMITH. 

1. How is copper formed into 
sheets ? 

2. For what purposes does the 
coppersmith employ this metal ? 


4. How are different pieces 
of this metal united ? 

5. Why is brass applied to a 
greater variety of purposes in 
the arts than copper ? 

6. 7. What is said of the ope¬ 
rations in brass ? 


THE BUTTON-MAKER. 

1. Name some of the sub¬ 
stances of which buttons are 
made. 

2, 3, 4, 5, 6,7, 8. Describe the 
several processes of manufac¬ 
turing different kinds of buttons. 


THE PIN-MAKER. 

2, 3, 4. Describe the process 
of making pins. 

6. How are pins numbered 
and put up ? 

7. What, is said of the origin 
of this instrument ? 

8. What was the origin of the 
phrase, pin-money ? 

9. 10. What is said of the pin 
manufacture in England, and 
also in some other parts of Eu¬ 
rope ? 

11. What success has attend¬ 
ed this business in New-York ? 



























OF THE PRECEDING PAGES. 


319 


THE TIN-PLATE WORKER, 


TIN. 

1. Where is tin found ? 

2. How many ores of tin are 
there ? 

3. How are the mines freed 
from water ? 

4. How is the ore raised from 
the mines ? 

5. What is said of a mine of 
stream tin, at St. Austle Moor ? 

6. How is the metal separated 
from foreign matters ? 

7. What is said of the inspec¬ 
tion of tin ? 

9,10. Wfyat is said of the trade 
in tin, in ancient times ? 


14. What are some of the pur¬ 
poses to which tin is applied ? 

15. In what way is it applied 
most extensively ? 

16. By what method are sheets 
of iron coated with this metal ? 

18, 19. Describe the process 
of silvering mirrors. 


THE TINTLATE WORKER. 

1. On what materials does the 
tinner operate? and to what pur¬ 
poses does he apply them ? 

2, 3. Describe some of the 
operations of this artisan. 


&C. 


LEAD. 

1. From what kind of ore ia 
the lead of commerce extract¬ 
ed? 

2. How is the metal obtained 
from the ore ? 

4. What is said of the lead 
mines on the Mississippi ? 

5. To what purposes is lead 
applied ? 

6. How is lead cast into sheets ? 

7. 8, 9. Describe the several 
methods of making leaden 
pipes. 

10,11. Describe the manufac¬ 
ture of shot. 


THE IRON FOUNDER, &c. 


IRON. 

I, 2. What is said of the great 
usefulness and extensive appli¬ 
cation of iron ? 

5, 6, 7. What is said of the dif¬ 
ferent kinds of ores ? 

8, 9. Describe the blast fur¬ 
nace. 

II, 12. In what manner is 
wood charred ? 

13. What preparations does 
the hard ore require, belbre it is 
put into the furnace ? 

14. By what means is the 
blast supplied ? 

15. What is called a half 
charge ? 

16. For what purpose is lime¬ 
stone used ? 

17,18. What is said of the pig- 
bed 1 and what of pig iron ? 


TIJE IRON FOUNDER. 

1. To what class of operators 
is the term founder applicable ? 
3, 4. Explain the process of 


forming a mould for casting a 
spider. 

7. In what manner are the 
moulds filled with the melted 
metal ? 

9. By what means, and in 
what manner, is the metal fused? 

10. What is said of the exten¬ 
sive application of cast iron ? 


THE BAR IRON MAKER. 

1. From what materials is bar 
iron manufactured ? 

2, 3, 4. Describe the process 
of making bar iron from pigs. 

5. How is bar iron manufac¬ 
tured directly from the ore ? 

7. What are blooms, and how 
and where are they manufac¬ 
tured ? 

8. How are blooms converted 
into bar iron ? 

9. How are blooms laminated 
into sheets ? 

10. How are rolled plates cut 
into rods and narrow strips ? 


THE WIRE DRAWER. 

1. How is iron reduced to the 
form of wire ? 

2. By w hat means is the re¬ 
sistance of the plate to the pas¬ 
sage of the wire overcome ? 


THE STEEL. MANUFACTURER. 

1. What is the composition of 
steel ? 

2, 3, 4. Describe the method 
of making steel by the process 
of cementation. 

5. IIow is blistered steel con¬ 
verted into tilled steel, and shear 
steel ? 

6. How are bars of blistered 
steel converted into cast steel ? 

7. What is said of steel made 
from cast iron, or directly from 
the ore ? 

8. What is said of the alloys 
of steel? 

10. What is said of the man¬ 
ufacture of steel in the United 
States ? 


THE BLACKSMITH, AND THE NAILOR. 


THE BLACKSMITH. 

1. In what materials does this 
artisan operate ? 

2, 3. What is said in reference 
to the general utility of this 
trade? 

4. Is it unnecessary for one 


blacksmith to be capable of exe¬ 
cuting every species of work ? 

5. What is said of the use of 
the tilt hammer ? 

7. How are the operations 
conducted in ordinary black¬ 
smith shops ? 


8. By w'hat means is iron ren¬ 
dered malleable ? 

9. How is the oxidation of the 
iron prevented while the tem¬ 
perature is being raised ? 

10. What remarkable property 
does steel possess ? 

































320 QUESTIONS ON THE ARTICLES OF THE PRECEDING PAG^S. 


THE NAILOIt. 

1 Into how many classes are 
nails divided ? 

2. In what manner are wrought 
nails manufactured ? 


3, 4. Describe the process of 
making cut nails. 

5. Why do we depend on for¬ 
eign countries for wrought 
nails ? 


C. What is said of machines 
for making cut nails ? 

7. How are the different sizes 
of tacks, spikes, and nails desig¬ 
nated ? 


THE CUTLER. 


1 What is said of the division 
of the cutler’s business into sev¬ 
eral branches ? 

2. Name the several processes 
constituting this business. 

3. What is the general method 
of forging iron and steel ? 

4. What is the object of the 
process of tempering ? 

5. Describe the general meth¬ 
od of tempering instruments. 

6. 7, 8. What degrees of tem¬ 
perature are used for tempering 


certain kinds of instruments 
mentioned ? 

9. How are the grinding and 
polishing of cutlery effected ? 

11. How may edge tools, nails, 
&c. made of cast iron, be con¬ 
verted into good steel ? 

12. Where were made the 
most celebrated swords of anti¬ 
quity ? 

13. In what country, and in 
what century, did the fork origin¬ 
ate ? 


14. Before the fork was in¬ 
troduced, what expedient was 
used to supply its place in carv¬ 
ing? 

15. What w r as the form of 
the table knives formerly in 
use ? 

16. What particular custom is 
mentioned as having existed in 
France? 

18. Where is the manufacture 
of cutlery 6 7 * 9 10 most extensively car¬ 
ried on ? 


THE GUNSMITH. 


1. What is the business of the 
gunsmith ? 

2. What are the principal parts 
of the instruments fabricated by 
this artificer ? 

3. 4, 5. Describe the process 
of making the barrels for guns 
and pistols ? 

6. Wherein do the barrels for 
rifles differ from those of other 
small-arms ? 


7,8. What is said of the manu¬ 
facture of the stocks? and also 
of the locks ? 

9,10. What is said in relation 
to the invention of gunpowder 
and fire-arms ? 

11. What fire-arms were first 
used in Europe ? and what was 
their original construction ? 

13. When were fire-arms of a 
portable size invented ? and what 


nation first adopted their use as 
a military w eapon ? 

14. When were the troops 
throughout Europe furnished 
with fire-locks, such as are now' 
used ? 

15. When was the bayonet in¬ 
vented ? 

16. 17. What is gunpowder? 
and what is the process of its 
manufacture ? 


d 


THE VETERINARY SURGEON. 


1. What is said of the diseases 
which affect the horse and other 
domestic animals ? 

2. What is said of a peculiar 
system formed in ancient times 
for animals labouring under dis¬ 
ease ? 

3. 4, 5. What is said of the 
veterinary writers of antiquity ? 


6, 7, 8. What is said of the 

cultivation of this art in Europe 

on the revival of learning ? 

9. What is said of the labours 
of William Gibson in relation to 
this science ? 

10. What is said of veterinary 
pursuits and publications in the 
eighteenth century ? 


11. What places are mentioned 
at which veterinary schools have 
been established ? 

12. What is said of the culti 
vation of this branch of know¬ 
ledge in the United States? 

13. To whom is the practiee 
of animal medicine chiefly con 

i fined ? 


THE END. 

53 V 7 4 9 




































































































































V 


Deacidified using the Bookkeeper process. 
Neutralizing agent: Magnesium Oxide 
Treatment Date: Aug. 2003 

PreservationTechnologies 

A WORLD LEADER IN PAPER PRESERVATION 

111 Thomson Park Drive 
Cranberry Township, PA 16066 
(724) 779-2111 











































































